


Roman Alphabet

by DeadWizardGod



Category: Doctor Who
Genre: A bit AU, F/M, Itll make sense, OC sort of not OC, Reincarnation, Rory is a BAMF, none of that season applies, written before angels take manhattan
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-16
Updated: 2015-02-16
Packaged: 2018-03-13 06:34:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 26
Words: 24,021
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3371408
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DeadWizardGod/pseuds/DeadWizardGod
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>On the outside, he wasn't nearly as interesting as Amy or the Doctor. But he had a fair few secrets and, if he was honest, probably more 'interesting' stories to tell. 26 stories about Rory.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A. Amelia

He had been following Amelia Pond. He always followed Amelia. Ever since he was six and she was five. Amelia never paid any attention him, she was to absorbed in her own little fantasies. Rory's step-parents had told him that Amelia's parents had died when she was little and she was being raised by her Aunt Sharon. But Sharon was hardly ever around, going on week long trips and leaving her niece at home, not even hiring a babysitter. So Rory had hired himself.

At eight-years-old, Rory Williams was very good at hiding and climbing trees. So he was sat in the tree outside Amelia's room, sharing his looks between the young girl and the front door. He was sure Amelia had seen him but he thought she might be used to him following her around. She was kneeling by her bed, praying. He couldn't hear her but he doubted she was praying to God. He had once seen her fight her aunt over going to church.

A strange sound filled the air and Rory fell out of the tree as a blue box crashed into Amelia's shed. Amelia ran out the door, ignored Rory and headed straight towards the blue box. Rory held his head in his hands, trying to remember what his step-dad told him about being hit on the head. The only thing that came to mind was slight memory loss.

He stood up when a piece of bread flew out of the door and a strange man shouted 'And stay out!' Rory rushed to the window as the man started eating fish fingers and dipping them in custard. Amelia was smiling and, as the man stood up, she smirked at Rory. The two of them walked upstairs and Rory scrambled back up the tree.

As he reached the top, he saw the crack in Amelia's wall expand and glow. An eye appeared in it and Amelia looked up at the man before glancing at him. Despite being terrified, he sent her a confident smile. At least he hoped it was confident.

The crack glowed and disappeared. The strange man ran out of the house and Amelia followed. He jumped back into the box which disappeared. Amelia ran back into the house and into her bedroom, packed her suitcase and ran back outside.

She sat down on her suitcase and sat there, waiting. Rory didn't know what but, when Amelia turned to smile at him, he climbed down and went to sit next to her. He turned to look at her.

'So who was he?'

'The Doctor. My Raggedy Doctor.'

They sat there for a few minutes before she turned to him.

'What's your name?'

He smiled slightly and held his hand out. 'Rory Williams. Nice to meet you Amelia.'


	2. B. Blood

Being a nurse, he was used to seeing blood. Travelling with the Doctor, he was used to danger. And being a Centurion, he was used to being injured. So when an alien stabbed him in the chest, he didn't freak out. He even managed to run back to the TARDIS, open the door and wait a couple of minutes before Amy got back. The Doctor followed soon after. He set the TARDIS into motion and Amy walked up to her husband.

She screamed when she saw the state of his shirt.

The Doctor ran over and was immediately flashing his sonic screwdriver over the wound and into Rory's face. Amy was pulling on his hand, dragging him off to the medical room. He allowed her to cart him off and even obliged to take his shirt off. The Doctor was hooking him up to a bunch of machines and Amy was holding his hand so tight, he thought she might break it.

'Guys, seriously I'm fine. It's not a serious wound.'

He knew he was letting Roman-Rory take over, control his personality. Mainly because Leadworth-Rory would have a panic attack at seeing his own blood but also because Roman-Rory knew more about sword wounds. He had gotten an almost identical wound in his third year in the Legion, saving his brother's life. He had been about nineteen at the time and Lucius had been seventeen. He shook his head, trying to rid his mind of memories of Lucius, Aelia, his parents, his wife and his children.

'Not serious!' Amy screamed and Rory was brought back to the present. 'You're covered in blood.'

Rory shook his head. 'So, I'm bleeding. That doesn't mean the wound itself it bad. A paper cut makes you bleed.'

The Doctor was looking at him with wide eyes and Rory knew he understood. Because the way he talked had changed, as well as his personality. He was more businesslike, more sarcastic and his voice was gruffer. One the machines he was hooked up to beeped and the Doctor's eyes widened.

'Amy.' He said, his voice holding a strange authority. 'Go to the console room.'

Rory's wife looked at the Time Lord murderously. 'Why?'

He glared back and opened the door. 'Because I said so, now go.'

She huffed, before walking out the door. The Doctor turned to the Last Centurion and frowned.

'Are you alright?' He said, concern lacing every syllable.

'No.' Rory said, looking his friend in the eye. 'I think she broke my hand.'

The Doctor scowled at him. 'You know what I mean.'

There was a few minutes silence before Rory turned to the Doctor. 'Why did you send Amy away?'

'Because of these charts.' The Doctor showed Rory some charts but they were in Gallifreyan, so he had no idea what they said. He looked at the doctor questionably.

'The old girl found two DNA's in your blood.'

Rory frowned. That was impossible.

'One of them is you, Rory Williams. The other we can't track but the TARDIS has found the closest matches. Do you know any of these people?'

He looked at the list and, just for a second, he was Leadworth-Rory and he was grieving.

_Marcus Aelius Castus_   
_Julia Maria_   
_Lucius Aelius Castus_   
_Aelia Casta_   
_'Aeliana' Aelia Casta_   
_'Aemilia' Aelia Casta_

'Yes, I know them.' He had to choke back a tear. Romans didn't cry, he reminded himself. 'The first two are my parents, the middle two are my siblings. The last two are my children.'

The Doctor looked at him, shocked. Rory stared back at him defiantly.  
'I did have a life in Rome you know.'

The Doctor sat down next to him and asked him questions. Rory talked about his siblings, when he was younger, meeting his wife Cassia Felixa, their beautiful daughters everything and anything that came to mind, the blood on his chest forgotten.


	3. C. Captured

If there was one place he never thought he would turn up, it was Area 51. But here he was, sat under a light, in a room with no windows, facing two men in suits.

'So...' He said, wishing Roman-Rory knew what to do in this situation. But the Centurion had been shot once in 1984 and, despite not actually being injured, the load noise and black powder had scared him. The door to his Roman self was closed and locked from the inside. 'Why am I here?'

They simply glared at him behind there glasses. He shrugged and lifted his feet onto the table in front of him, thinking of what the Doctor would do in his situation, what Amy would do, what Artorius Aelius Castus (otherwise known as Roman-Rory) would do. They would all put up a bloody good fight. But not Rory. It was at that moment the door opened and a very important man walked in. Rory could tell he was important because he wasn't wearing sunglasses.

'Ah, Mr. Williams. How are you?'

The American made it sound like Rory wasn't chained to his chair, his hands in cuffs.

'Very good, and yourself?' Despite his worry, Rory wasn't going to let the man make him round.

'Very good. How are you parents, Mr. Williams?'

What a bizarre question. But Rory smirked at him and replied. 'It depends which parents you mean. My birth parents left me on a doorstep when I was eight months old so I have no way of knowing how they are. My step-parents are very well; at least they were the last time I checked. And my _parentes_ have been dead almost two thousand years.'

One of the goons frowned. _'Parentes_?'

The leader didn't miss a beat. 'It's Latin. Means parents.'

Rory nodded. His _pater_ and _mater_ had taught him Latin of course, what over language would he learn growing up in Rome.

'So why am I here?' He was almost tempted to ask in Latin, just to see how well the man's lingo served him.

'Well Mr. Williams.' Rory wondered why he kept using his title. Maybe it sounded better. 'We believe you have knowledge of a man named the Doctor.'

Rory raised his eyebrows in what he hoped was a that-interesting kind of face. 'And how do I have this knowledge?'

The second goon scoffed. 'You travelled with him. Through space and time.'

Rory turned back to the lead man. 'And what is it you want to know?'

The American smiled. 'We just need you to confirm some rumours for us. We're trying to gather as much information about the Doctor as we can.'

Rory nodded and the man's smile widened.

'Is it true, the Doctor has two hearts?'

'I don't know.'

The American frowned but continued.

'Is it true, his TARDIS looks like a blue box?'

'I don't know.'

'Is it true he can regenerate?'

'I don't know.'

'Is it true-?'

'Sir.' One of the goons interrupted. 'I don't think he's going to talk.'

The man nodded and left. The goons walked over and unlocked his chains. Rory didn't think for one moment they were letting him go. He was right; they walked down the corridor for aces minutes before they chucked him a cell with an alien with three eyes and one leg.

He stayed for about six weeks. Every day he was the same questions, over and over again. When he wouldn't answer, they hit him and when he didn't react, they threatened his loved ones. But it was 1977; his parents hadn't even found him yet. He wasn't even born yet.

He was in the middle of interrogation, a knife inches from his throat when the door burst open. Standing there was the Doctor, Amy and a bunch of army guys. With one flick of the sonic screwdriver, Rory was free and Amy was running towards him, calling him stupid and telling him to never get captured again.


	4. D. Dreams

He woke up in a cold sweat, the ghost of a sword on his neck. Next to him, Amy didn't stir. Careful not to disturb her, he left their room and walked towards the TARDIS controls. He was trying to clear his head and he wanted to be alone.

He had been having dreams every night. They varied in a lot of things but were always set in the life he never had: Rome and guarding the Pandorica. Sometimes they were good dreams, like the times he saw his daughters, but sometimes they were incredibly bad, like the one he just had. When he reached the controls, rather than stand or sit, he laid down on the glass floor and closed his eyes.

'Rory.' The Doctors voice drifted from around the controls. 'What are you doing?'

'Sleeping.' He opened his eyes to find the Doctor, his face full of childish curiously and concern, standing over him.

'Should you be doing that, you know, in bed?'

Rory shrugged. 'I've tried that. Doesn't work when you wake up with your brother's sword pressed to your neck.'

The Doctor raised an eyebrow and laid down next to Rory. 'So you were dreaming?'

'Yep.'

'And in that dream, you were fighting Lucius?'  
'Yep.'  
'Was it a memory?'

'Yep.'

'What happened?'

By this time, the two of them were staring at the ceiling, almost ignoring the other. Rory breathed deeply before talking. This was not an easy story to tell.

'Someone had killed one of our Commanders. People started pointing at Lucius, blaming him. I stood up for him so the other Centurions said I was to blame. Our new Commander said, as he could not blame either of us without proof, we would fight to the death, the winner living free. Lucius immediately agreed. I didn't want to, but when someone comes at you with a sword, what can you do?'

'You killed your brother?'

'Yes, and I hated myself everyday afterwards. When they found the real murderer, I killed him as well.'

He turned to see the Doctor looking at him, confused. 'What?'

'You talk about it so casually.' The Time Lord said. 'The only emotion I can hear is disappointment.'

Rory shrugged again. 'That's life in the Army. Kill or be killed. And I guess I am disappointed, I wanted to see my daughters tonight.'

'You have dreams like this every night.'

Rory shook his head and stood up. 'No, Doctor I don't.'

He walked out of the control room, heading towards his bedroom. Just at the last minute he turned.

'I have dreams like this every minute.'


	5. E. Engagement

He had brought the ring three weeks ago but had never found the right time to ask her. But, after seeing aliens attacking earth, Amy's raggedy Doctor coming back and having his phone used to call said aliens, he couldn't think of a better time.

Amy was crying. The Doctor had left. Again.

He didn't want to ask her now that would be cruel. So he took off his jacket and wrapped it around her. She smiled and allowed him to pull her into the house. He took her into the kitchen and made her hot chocolate. She smiled and nodded at the seat next to her. He sat down and she leaned onto his shoulder, burying her face in his neck. He wrapped his arms around her and they just sat there, not saying anything. They never had to.

'Was he that weird last time?'

Amy removed her head from Rory's neck and nodded. 'A bit weirder.'

Rory chuckled. 'Is that even possible?'

Amy laughed as well, even if it was incredibly quiet.

'Do you think we'll see him again?' She whispered, almost fearfully.

'Of course he will.'

'How can you know that?'

'Because I know you. You're to stubborn to let him slip through your fingers.'

Amy shifted in her seat to stare at him. 'Rory, he thought twelve years were five minutes. He said he would be gone the same amount of time.'

Rory sighed. 'Amy, the guys a genius. And he obviously likes you. Didn't you see his face when you told him it was twelve years?'

Amy looked at him quizzically. 'And how exactly did you see that? It was just me and him.'

Rory blushed. 'I was in the tree. I was waiting for you to go back into your room but you never did.'

Amy raised an eyebrow. 'And why were you in the tree. You only ever climb it for special occasions.'

It was true. Ever since that fateful night twelve years ago, Amy had refused to let anyone climb the tree except for Rory. And he was only allowed up there, to pick the apples, when it was a special day. So Rory had tried to make the engagement extra special by proposing while in the tree. It hadn't worked.

'Rory?' Amy's voice was small. 'Why were you in the tree?'

It was now or never in his mind. Without thinking, he slid off his chair, went down on one knee and pulled out the ring.

'Amelia Jessica Pond. Will you marry me?'

She didn't answer, just leaned down, slipped the ring on her finger and kissed her new fiancé.


	6. F. Family

Artorius Aelius Castus was on the beach with his family. It was odd for all eight of them to be there but Artorius' father had insisted they went to his Laurentum Villa before he died. And he didn't have long left. Lucius and Aelia were skimming stones, Marcus, Julia and Cassia were discussing Emperor Trajan's succession to the throne and Artorius was was watching his daughters playing in the sea.  
'Artorius!'  
He turned to see his sister waving at him. One eye still in Aeliana and Aemilia, he walked up to his siblings and picked at stone from the beach. The three of them lined up and threw their rocks, Artorius' going the furthest. He smiled as his daughters waved to him from the surf. The twins were five years old and looked just like their mother; blonde hair, green eyes. They had their fathers smile though.  
Lucius was two years younger than him and Aelia was two years younger still. While Artorius took after their mother, his younger siblings looked like their father; black hair and brown eyes. The three of them loved the Villa, having been going there since they were babies. Aelia had even been born in the Villa.  
'Aemilia!' Artorius looked up to see Aeliana shouting as her sister swum deeper and deeper into the sea. Without thinking, he sprinted toward the sea and sped after her. Behind him, his family was shouting, trying to get their youngest to turn back. But she was beginning to fall into the water, and he couldn't reach her in time.  
'Aemilia!'  
He reached her as she was submerged. He pulled her into his arms and swam back to shore. He laid her down, breathed twice into her mouth before thumping on her chest five times. He didn't know why he was doing this, he just knew a small part of his brain was functioning and this was the right thing to do. Aeliana ran out of the sea towards him and began shouting at her sister to wake up. The rest of their family came running over, Cassia picking up Aeliana as she went. Some small part of Artorius' brain told him to stop. He tried to fight it but it insisted it was right and he stopped. The Castus family stared at their youngest willing her to wake. Eventually she coughed and her eyes opened. Her father wasted no time in pulling her into a hug.  
'Paenitet me patris.' She whispered in his ear. 'Non iterum facere.'  
He chuckled slightly. 'Vos melior non.'

~*~*~

'Amy.'  
His wife was standing at the window, looking out at their garden. Her hands were subconsciously rubbing her belly, where their unborn child was sleeping. He walked up to her and took her hand.  
'Amy, it's been five years. I'm sure he will come back but you can't stare out the window every day.'  
Amy turned around and glared at him.  
'I know.' She said, sitting down next to him. 'But I miss him.'  
'So do I.'  
She leaned on his shoulder and he wrapped an arm around her. Suddenly she lifted her head and looked at him expectantly.  
'What?' He asked, wondering what mood swing had taken hold of his wife this time.  
'Names, Rory! We haven't thought of names.'  
Rory smiled. They had considered several weeks ago when Amy first discovered she was pregnant but she must have forgotten.  
'Of course we have Amy. You wanted Zachariah for a boy and I wanted Victoria for a girl. Is that still fine with you?'  
She nodded, then shook her head. 'But what if I have twins? We need back up names Rory.'  
He gulped, knowing what would happen if he didn't come up with an answer quick. 'What about Arthur for a boy? I always liked that name.'  
He hoped she didn't ask why. He wasn't sure he would have the strength to tell her about that night when he was four. He never told anyone about that.  
'And what about a girl? Can we name her after my mum?'  
Rory smiled sadly at her. 'I don't know your mum's name love.'  
A small tear fell from Amy's cheek. 'Tabetha.'  
Rory kissed his wife forehead and smiled. 'Tabetha Victoria Williams. I like it.'  
Amy pulled a face. 'I like Arthur Zachariah Williams better.'  
He smiled and kissed her again.

~*~*~

He was hiding behind the door. They didn't know he was there because, honestly, who expected a four year old to be any good at espionage. He was listening to his parents arguing with people he had never met before and it scared him. Because his mummy and daddy had never made their voices that loud before. His name and another boys name kept appearing in the conversation but the adults were using words he didn't know so he didn't understand.  
'I don't care, we have a right to see him.' The strange man shouted.  
'You lost that right three years ago.' His father shouted back.  
'Arthur is our son, we should be allowed to visit him.'  
'Rory is our son and if you go near him, we will take you to court.'  
There was silence in the room. Rory never liked the silence and his body seemed to know that, or maybe his was just hungry. His stomach rumbled, load and clear like someone clearing their throat. He closed his eyes and listened as the door opened. When he opened his eyes, his father was stood there, using one arm to hold back another man. This man was older and was looking at Rory like a blind man seeing the light. He tried to reach a hand out to him but the younger man bent down and picked up his stepson.  
Rory's stepfather carried him back into the room and placed him on the sofa between his parents. The older man walked up to a woman who appeared to be his wife and they began talking in low tones. While they were talking, Rory's stepmother put her arm round him. He looked up at her, confused. She shook her head as the strangers turned to look at him.  
'We would like ten minutes alone with our son, then we won't bother you again.'  
As Rory's stepparents talked over his head, he took a good look at the other adults. It was then he realised who they were. Standing in front of him, were his own two parents. His real parents. He had always wanted to know what they looked like. He realised he got his eyes and smile from his father and the rest of his looks from his mother. His stepparents started shouting at his real parents but he shook his head and stood up. The adults looked at him, startled.  
'I want to talk to them.' He said, causing them all to gasp.  
'Rory...' His stepmother began but he shook his head, stopping her mid sentence.  
'10 minutes, mum. That's all they want.'  
His stepparents nodded and left the room. Rory knew they were stood outside the door, listening for any kind of disturbance in the room.  
There was silence in the room for a few minutes before Rory walked to a small door in the corner and opened it, revealing stairs that lead to his room. He shouted to his stepparents and his real parents followed him upstairs. Once again they sat in silence until his mother spoke.  
'What this?'  
She was running her hand over the small crack in Rory's wall. His eyes widened and he reached up and pulled her hand away. A look of pure fear flashed across his face.  
'You can't touch that. Please don't touch that.'  
'Why ever not?'  
Rory gulped. 'The last person to touch that disappeared. Nobody even remembers him.'  
'That's silly. Now come on, let's see what we can do about this crack.'  
Rory's father turned and ran a finger over the crack. As he did it began to glow and grow. Before Rory could even shout 'NO!' the crack pulsed with a blinding light and his father was gone. Tears fell from his eyes.  
'What's wrong, Arthur?'  
'He's gone, he's gone, he's gone.' He kept repeating.  
'Whose gone?'  
Rory looked up at his mother, eyes brimming with tears. 'My father, your husband.'  
She laughed slightly. 'Don't be silly, I don't have a husband. Now let's see what we can do about this crack.'  
Like her husband before her, she turned and ran a finger along the crack. Rory could only watch as she two was swallowed up by the light. As she disappeared, Rory ran at the wall, running a finger over it, thinking if he could open it, he could get them back. But the crack wouldn't open. He fell onto his bed, crying.  
When his stepmother found him curled up into a ball, she just stood there, ignorant of the two people who never were.

~*~*~

Rory Matthew Williams, known to a few as Rory Pond, to fewer as Artorius Aelius Castus or the Last Centurion, and to one person Arthur Christopher Tempus, sat on a small bench watching his family running around him. Amy had taken the Doctor, who had turned up for their 60th anniversary, round their house, because he hadn't been there in 15 years. As Rory looked out at his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. He couldn't help but smile.  
If you didn't count River, and due to her reversing time stream they usually didn't, Amy and Rory had 5 children, 15 grandchildren and, so far, 4 great-grandchildren.  
They had named their oldest Arthur. Arthur's siblings were named Stella, Xavier, Alexandra and Parker. Arthur had married Victoria from the village and they had four children; Rowan, Clara, Avery and Phineas. Rowan had a son, Zachary, with Allison, another girl from the village. In fact, most of Rory's family had married people from the village.  
Stella had married Oliver and their children were called Cooper, Nolan and Charlotte. Cooper's children Jennifer and Melissa, had lost their mother in a car accident so Charlotte helped out a lot. Xavier had married Caitlyn, the only member of the family not from Leadworth, and their children were called Jude, Lucy, Max and Eleanor. Jude's son Joseph, was dyslexic. Alexandra married Alexander and called their children Alexa and Alexis. When asked why they just laughed. Parker and his wife, Jane, moved away but visited with their children, Dominic and Sebastian, on family occasions, like today.  
Rory felt a tug on his trousers and looked down at 5 year old Zachary, whose face was full with confusion and excitement. He leaned down to pick up his great-grandson and Zachary leaned to whisper in his ear.  
'I found a blue box. It's alive.'  
Rory laughed and set Zachary on the floor. 'Why don't you show me this blue box then?'  
Zachary took Rory's hand and walked him through the garden. They came to the TARDIS and Rory pulled out his key from where it hang around his neck. He twisted it in the lock without a thought and open the door.  
Zachary gasped the second it was open. He made to run out into the TARDIS but Rory grabbed him, lifting him into the air. He twisted him round and hugged him close.  
'You can't tell anyone about this, Zachary.' He whispered in his great-grandson's ear. 'It has to be our secret.'  
Zachary nodded and smiled at the old man. 'Our secret. Promise.'  
The two of them walked out of the TARDIS, Rory smiling at his wife as their family remained unknowing.


	7. G. Greatness

There is a saying. It originated in earth but expanded to the furthest reaches of the galaxy. Over time it changed but the meaning still remains the same. This saying was very fitting for the trial of Rory Williams. The man was sat on a stool, trying to look relaxed as the humanoid aliens looked down on him with hatred. He had been charged with the greatest crime on the planet; entering the court of the king without permission.  
The Doctor and Amy had been forbidden to enter the trial because they were just five seconds away from joining him in the king's court. Instead they were thrown in prison until the court was done with him. The king himself was overseeing the trial, which was not to judge if he was guilty or not. He had the Doctor to thank for that. The Doctor had argued that, according to Juris Legis law, if a man was judged worthy of seeing the king he was forgiving of his crimes. So the aliens had managed to track down his entire family tree, life story, everything and were going to judge him.  
The king walked in and the crowd rose to great him. Rory moved to get to his feet but he was shoved down again. Artorius shouted insults in Latin but Rory ignored him. He was getting good that.  
The king looked at him. 'Rory Matthew Williams. Real name Arthur Christopher Tempus. Also known as Artorius Aelius Castus. You are here to be judged on the quality of your life.'  
Rory was glad Amy wasn't here because he couldn't stand her to know about those names.  
'Your records are incredibly confusing. According to this, your life was rather average until you were in your 20's. Around that time you helped the Doctor save many planets and times. You even saved his life from the Silurians at the cost of your own.'  
Every Juris Legis in the room gasped. Those closest to him took steps back.  
'You were then brought back by unknown forces. You fought in the Roman military and defeated many adversaries, many of whom were a lot stronger than you. You were then drafted to Britain, away from your Roman family, where you once again met the Doctor. Your memories of your previous life were returned to you and you watched as your friends were defeated around you. One of them by your own hand.'  
The aliens began shifting. So this man was a murderer.  
'Silence!' The king shouted. 'This man had his actions controlled. Instantly after he realised what he had done, he tried to set things right. He waited 2000 years to make sure his friend stayed alive. He fought off anyone who tried to do her harm. Eventually, he reached the right timeline and he set things right.'  
They all nodded as if that was a good thing.  
'However, this doesn't solve anything. You reacted the same way any man to most situations and only excelled in a few. So I ask you a question.'  
The king leaned forward. Rory's eyes flickered to the side, noticing someone familiar, before looking at the king.  
'Why did you enter my court?'  
In way of answer, he turned to grab the sword of one of his guards. Allowing Artorius to take over, he flung the sword over the kings shoulder. The bullet intended for the king's back bounced back to hit the assassin in the shoulder.  
'You appeared to be in danger.' Artorius said, smirking.  
He gave the sword back and allowed Rory his body back. The king nodded and said something about being innocent. Rory left the room and smiled as Amy flew into his arms. The king walked out and nodded at him. He smiled back. The Doctor, who had been talking to one of the Juris Legis, walked over.  
'You just saved the king's life.' He said.  
'No need to sounds so surprised.' He said back, Artorius snarling in his head. 'I may be a little greater than you think.'  
'Well you weren't when we first met.'  
'Well that just proves the saying then doesn't it.'  
'What saying?'  
Rory smiled. 'You're hundreds of years old, I'm sure you remember at one point.'

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you didn't guess the saying is "some are born great, others grow into greatness but some have greatness thrust upon them".


	8. H. Hero

In his time travelling with the Doctor, he met several people he could call heroes.  
They met the Beatles once, all of whom flirted with Amy. Two of them recognised the time travellers which sent them on a wild goose chase to save 9-year-old Paul McCartney and 8-year-old George Harrison from a group of aliens who apparently hated music. Nice.  
Another time, they met Winston Churchill. Amy and the Doctor greeted him like an old friend but it took him and Rory ages to hit it off as Rory spoke Latin which came from Rome, in Italy. But eventually, the Centurion saved the Prime Minister's life and all was forgiven.  
The weirdest 'hero' he ever met though, was himself. They were in Rome, Amy's idea. He recognised it as his home town of Ostia but it didn't click with him even when the Doctor told the year was 90 AD. It only dawned on him when he heard three voices from around the corner. He was hiding from Roman guards with Amy and the Doctor in one of his old hiding places when he heard the voices.  
'This is stupid, Artorius!'  
'Oh be quiet, Lucius, it's fun.'  
'But he's right. If we get caught-'  
'We won't Aelia. Trust me.'  
Rory froze and the others looked at him weirdly. No, no, no. Impossible. That was him. Judging from the date, he was only 10 and his sibling 8 and 6. He began looking for an escape. He looked at the old back entrance and cursed in Latin. He may have fit when he was 10 but not anymore.  
'So, here's what we do-' His younger self was saying.  
'Dad's coming! Hide!' Lucius shouted.  
The three children jumped into the hiding place. Aelia crashed into Amy, Lucius bumped into the Doctor and Artorius bowled himself over.  
'Hey!' The little boy shout-whispered. 'This is my hiding place!'  
Rory was about to say something about being there first but the Doctor spoke first.  
'Oh hello!' He smiled, steadying Lucius. 'What're your names then?'  
The three children looked at each other. Eventually Rory's little sister spoke up. 'I'm Aelia Casta. These are my brothers Artorius and Lucius.'  
The Doctor glanced at Rory before smiling at the children.  
'Well, Aelia. Would it be possible for you and your brothers to help us out. We need to sneak into the Temple of Apollo.'  
The three siblings looked at each other. 'What's in it for us?' Lucius said, raising an eyebrow.  
The Doctor opened and closed his mouth. He had no way of knowing what a Roman child would want. He glanced at Rory who dropped to his knees in front of the children. He whispered something in the oldest's ear. Artorius smiled and nodded at his siblings. Lucius poked his head out of the hiding place before gesturing at the others to follow him. They all ran down the street before dodging through an alleyway. The dodged through several alleys before they came to a big temple. The children lead them to the back entrance and they headed towards it. The Doctor tried to get the kids to stay outside but they refused.  
As they entered, a bird of fire flew at them, attacking them. Rory picked up his younger self while Amy and Doctor picked up his siblings.  
Artorius squirmed until Rory was forced to drop him. The boy ran about shouting and getting the bird's attention. Rory cursed in Latin and let Artorius take control. He ran after his younger self and jumped in front of the bird. It knocked him down then flew towards the Doctor. The young boy ran towards his future friend and jumped in the birds way.  
It raked it's talons over his shoulder and he screamed. Rory froze, remembering the pain. He still had three long scars that ran down his back. The Doctor bleeped his sonic screwdriver and the bird disappeared into ashes. He patched up the little boy and smiled at his companions.  
'Of we go then.'  
They were almost out the door when Rory turned and ran back. He took his gladius from his side and put it a Artorius' feet.  
'There you go, your reward.' Artorius went to give it back but Rory shook his head. 'Keep it, you'll need it.'


	9. I. Incarnations

_First_  
Ian and Barbara stepped out of the TARDIS and frowned. They turned to complain but a boy crashed into them.  
'Go away!  
The Doctor stepped out and glared at the boy. He was barely 16 and he was ordering him around. How dare he?  
The Doctor opened his mouth to speak but the boy shook his head.  
'I don't care which Doctor you are, you're not Amy's, so go!'  
The Doctor shook his head but Susan smiled at the boy.  
'Oh, come on Grandfather. We don't want to upset this poor boy. He obviously knows one of your future selves.'  
The Doctor glared one more time at the boy before retreating into his TARDIS and taking off.

 _Second_  
He stumbled out of the TARDIS, Jamie following him. Jamie asked about the year and the Doctor shrugged. 1997 or something. He vaguely recognised the soundings from his first incarnation.  
They had stumbled into a school playground. There was a small child sat on the swings but the other children were ignoring him. The boy looked up and smiled.  
'Hello.' He said. Jamie smiled back and the Doctor chuckled. 'Amy'll be sad she missed you. She didn't believe me when I said you had different face.'  
The Doctor frowned. He grabbed Jamie's arm and carted him back into the TARDIS. The little boy waved goodbye.  
The Doctor felt bad later when he realised the little boy was who he thought he was.

 _Third_  
He was just trying out the TARDIS, trying to get used to flying it again. He hadn't meant to crash into the poor man. Well, when he saw who it was, he didn't know whether or not to be sorry. This was, after all, the same person who shouted at him in his 1st incarnation. The man smiled and shook his hand.  
'Good to see you again, Doctor. Well, I assume you're the Doctor. You are aren't you?'  
'Of course I am.' He was feeling a bit annoyed.  
'Good, good.' The man was still grinning. 'Which one, might I ask?'  
'Third.'  
'Oh, so we're quiet far away from travelling together.' He let this man travel with him. Why? 'Anyway, got to be going.' Yes go, stupid boy. 'Amy's cravings are getting a bit weird. Marmite and cheese, can you believe it?'  
The man shook his hand again and ran off. The Doctor shook his head and re-entered the TARDIS.

 _Fourth_  
Landing in someone's backyard was never something he meant to do. But he was companion-less so he was being reckless. As he exited the TARDIS, a small boy, no older than five came running out of the house, screaming. He saw the Doctor and ran towards him, hugging him round the middle.  
'What's wrong, little boy?' The boy was now holding onto his scarf like a lifeline. 'What happened?'  
'Help me.' The boy whispered. 'The crack in my wall keeps eating people.'  
The Doctor took the boy by the hand and allowed himself to be pulled into the house and up to the boys bedroom. He inspected the crack before removing it without hesitation. The little boy followed him down to the TARDIS. He smiled at him as he entered the ship. He dug around in his coat before chucking a small white bag into the boys hands.  
'There you go.' He smiled. 'Have some Jelly Babies.'

 _Five_  
When they entered the National Museum, Nyssa ran off to look at the paintings. The Doctor debated following before heading off to look at one of the oldest exhibits. The Pandorica had been around for at least 2000 years and there was not a scratch on it. Looking around and not seeing anyone, he reached forward to touch the monument.  
'I wouldn't do that.'  
He set away and turned to see the guard walking towards him. For a second, he thought he recognised the man but he shook his head of those thoughts. He had met that man in the 21st century, it was impossible for him to be alive in the 1930's. His grandfather maybe.  
'Sorry.' He said, nodding at the guard. 'I was only taking a look.'  
The guard smiled and nodded. He was about to open his mouth to say something when Nyssa ran round the corner, shouting for the Doctor. The guard was left shocked as the Doctor walked away.

 _Six_  
He walked out of the TARDIS, looking around. The TARDIS scanners were telling him something special about this time and place. But he saw nothing amazing about a sleepy little village in the 2040's. He kept looking around for something interesting but there was nothing.  
'There you are!'  
He turned to see a man in his 50's running towards him at full speed. The man stopped and almost burst out laughing.  
'What are you wearing, Doctor? I thought 11 was bad.'  
'What are you on about!'  
'Oh you must be before him! Sorry, called the TARDIS at the wrong time. Which incarnation are you?'  
'Six! Now what are you on about?'  
'Don't worry.' The man was pushing him back into the TARDIS. 'Come back in 5 regenerations. Go on old girl, take him some place interesting.'  
The man patted the TARDIS and smiled as the doors closed.

 _Seven_  
The Doctor was bored. That didn't happen much but it was happening now. The TARDIS had just decided to stop without warning and kick him out. He recognised the village as the one he had landed in during his last incarnation but the TARDIS said it was 20 years earlier. He looked around worriedly, hoping he wouldn't see that man again.  
'Hello again.'  
He started and jumped up. The man sat next to him raised an eyebrow. It was him. Dammit.  
'You're a bit jumpy this time. Are you always like that or did I catch you at a bad time?' The Doctor glared at him. 'Bad time, got it.'  
It was then the Doctor noticed a child clutching to the man's leg. He smiled at the little boy and he hid behind his father.  
'Parker, don't hide from your Godfather.'  
The Doctor started again and the man looked guilty. 'Sorry, spoilers. Anyway, got to go, Amy'll be worried.'  
He shook hands with the Doctor and picked his son up. As they left, Parker waved goodbye over his father's shoulder. Despite not knowing the boy, the Doctor couldn't help but wave back.

 _Eight_  
He was confused. He didn't know who he was, where he was or how he got there. He had managed to find some clothes but none of the shoes fit right. He was wondering about the building, trying to find something that made sense. Eventually he managed to find an empty room. He began looking for shoes under the sofas and behind the TV.  
'Hello.'  
He jumped and turned around. Sat on one of the chairs was a twelve year old boy. He was smiling him.  
'What're you doing here?' The boy asked. The man shrugged.  
'What're you doing here?' He countered.  
'Waiting for my Aunt Grace. She was supposed to look after me today but I think she forgot.'  
The man frowned. 'And that doesn't bother you.'  
He shook his head. 'I've got the telly. Mum'll pick me up tomorrow and I'll go home. What's bothering you?'  
The man stamped his feet. 'I can't find any shoes.'  
The boy laughed and turned to watch the TV. The man slipped out the room, hoping he'd see the boy again one day.

 _Nine_  
He and Rose were walking down the street, holding hands and smiling. It was a small village but it was nice to be there. They had missed Rose's home time by a few years but it didn't matter. Rose made a joke about his ears and he glared at her, jokingly. They both looked up as a bunch of people ran past. The one in the middle looked over and instantly began fighting out of the crowd, running toward them. He shouted at the others that he'd be back soon.  
'Doctor.' He said, running up and shaking hand with the Time Lord. He turned to Rose. 'And you must be, oh what was it?'  
The two travellers shared a glance. The Doctor recognised the man but didn't make a comment.  
'Rose!' The man finally exclaimed, shaking said girls hand. 'Nice to meet you.' He turned to the Doctor.  
'And you, I have to remind you to come tomorrow.'  
'And what's tomorrow?'  
'My wedding. Well, mine and Amy's but she hasn't met you as many times I don't think. 26th June, 2010. I hope you can make it.'  
With that, he turned around and ran back toward his friends. The Doctor and Rose shared a look before turning and heading back to the TARDIS.

 _Ten_  
He heard the old man before he saw him. He was taking long laboured breaths. His breath rose in front of him in the cold and he was shaking. He was sat on a bench, staring up at the stars and looked deathly ill. As the Doctor watched, the man let out a hacking cough and almost fell over. He jumped forward to catch him.  
'Trust me.' He said when the man tried to wiggle out of his grip. 'I'm a Doctor.'  
'So am I.' The man said back, straightening up. 'Besides you're not a real doctor, not even on your planet.'  
The Doctor froze. 'What?'  
'Don't worry, we'll meet again one day.'  
'You don't look like you've got long left.'  
He rolled his eyes. 'Bloody hell, Doctor, of course I don't. But you'll meet again.'  
There was silence before the man turned to the Doctor again.  
'What's your real name?'  
The Doctor raised an eyebrow. 'That's a secret.'  
The man looked around. 'And who exactly am I going to tell?'  
The Doctor sighed and leaned to whisper in the man's ear. Finally the man stood up.  
'Well I've got to go. My wife is waiting for me.'  
'Don't tell her.' He said quickly.  
'Oh Doctor.' The man chuckled. 'You told Amy years ago.'  
And he left, leaving the Doctor confused and cold.

 _Eleven_  
He watched him across the TARDIS. He couldn't really understand. He had met this man eleven times now, only six if you were going by his time but it didn't matter. He smiled at the newlyweds as Amy dragged her husband off to show him the TARDIS. He patted the console, silently asking her to keep them occupied for a while. What seemed like laughter echoed throughout the TARDIS as the Doctor sat down.  
This was impossible. He almost did a scan of the boy, just to see if there were any anomalies in his DNA or anything. But he didn't, he just sat there wondering if the man wondering his TARDIS knew just how special he was.

 _Twelve_  
He was early. He could from the second he saw he left the TARDIS. Mainly due to the fact that one of his old companions was sat there, looking distinctively younger. He checked the date. Amy's birthday.  
His old friend looked nervous and was holding a box of chocolates and flowers. He was shaking. He tried to remember the stories Amy told him off her 18th birthday. Some about falling in love, romance and beautiful flowers. He didn't remember the exact details but he could that, if things continued as they did, Amy would not be getting beautiful flowers. He ran back into the TARDIS, looking for something special. Eventually he found a bunch of flowers from the planet Sidorni in the Draxa system and ran they out to his friend.  
'Here,' he said, shoving the flowers into the teenagers hand. 'Give her those.'  
The young boy opened his mouth to reply but the Doctor was already running away and into his TARDIS. It was only when he was in there that he realise.  
Twelve times. He had met one person twelve times.

 _Thirteen_  
He stepped out in his brand new body, expecting to see Amy. He had decided to bring it up to thirteen times, every incarnation, but he appeared to be a bit early. He turned to step back into the TARDIS when he heard crying. A baby crying. He turned straight back around and began looking for the child. He found him under a bush wrapped up in a blanket. He knew it was a he because attached to his blanket was a note saying. 'My name is Arthur Christopher Tempus.'  
The boy was shaking. The Doctor cradled him on one arm and walked into the TARDIS. He scanned the child, checking for injuries or illnesses and almost dropped the boy. In his arm, the baby continued to cry. The Doctor flicked a few switches and the TARDIS moved silently to the next destination. They were in front of a house. He recognised the house from his fourth incarnation and walked up to the doorstep.  
He place the child on the floor and knocked very hard on the door. He turned and entered the TARDIS, setting the destination to random. As the ship disappeared, the sound of it leaving reached the little boy's ears and he quietened. Having the TARDIS as a lullaby, Arthur Tempus, soon to be Rory Williams, fell asleep.


	10. J. Jetsam

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lots of Latin in this chapter, just so you know.

Some people are drifters. Not really themselves but their souls. Some souls wonder from place to place never quite realising they are leaving their bodies behind. In rare cases, people have two souls, living in one body, I once met a man with eleven.

I was such a soul. I had my own body, once. I was a young boy with a family. I grew up and had a family of my own. Then I was drafted with the army and everything changed.

There was a lady in camp, asking for help. The lady had convinced all the men she was Cleopatra and I didn't disagree. I did not want my mind changed. Some of the men began to worry, their memories were returning and they were confused, so I went to our commanders tent to ask for assistance. The second I saw the woman, something my head clicked, like a puzzle piece that had originally refused to go in. I still wasn't certain what was going on but I volunteered straight away.

I followed her to a great stone structure. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I recognised the place. I was trying to make sense of the situation when, from a gap in the ground, I heard someone screaming. I drew my sword and ran down. I stabbed the metal thing in the back as it tried to attack someone through a door. The door swung open, revealing a red head woman.

I froze as another presence appeared in my mind. No, not my mind anymore. I retreated into almost nothingness as this new man, a man who knew the red head and understood the words the Cleopatra woman said, took over. But the second he did, I realised, he had always been there. Now, though our roles were reversed. The difference was I was stronger. I could fight my way back to control.

The problem with being a soul, a presence in someone mind, is that time seems to pass differently if you're not concentrating. In what seemed like a second, we were stood outside, looking up at a thousand lights. Next, we were holding the red head woman in our arms, crying. I would have shouted at the man for allowing us to cry but the next second, we were talking to a strange man who disappeared, leaving us alone.

The man, whose name I could just recognise as Rory, drew my sword and sat down. This would be the time to talk.

_'Lorem'_ I whispered in his mind. He spun round, standing.

'Who's there?' He shouted.

_'Oh, quiescite. Proin ut nulla umquam dimicatio pessima.'_

'Who are you? Where are you?'

It was strange. Despite the fact I had never heard his language before, we were both able to understand. I mentally sighed. _'Artorius Aelius Castus et ego vobis in corporis mei. Ego in capite.'_

'I'm sorry, but you can't have it back.' He laughed slightly. 'I need it.'

_'Vos can animadverto meus memoria sic facio, nescis nunc est laborum.'_

'I know you miss Cassia and the girls but look into my mind. I'm sure you'll realise I need it more.'

I didn't want to, I really didn't but I looked anyway. I couldn't believe this man's life. He had been in love with the red head for as long he could remember. The two of them went travelling with the strange man and he had...died. But then he was brought back to share my body and he had been forced to kill the one he loved. Now, the only chance he had was to leave her in this box and wait 2000 years for someone to wake her up. But he stayed because he couldn't let anything happen to her.

I floated to the back of his mind, allowing him to think for himself. That was how I spent most of my existence from then on. Drifting in the back of someone else's mind, never really needed. Sometimes, the strange man would talk directly to me and Rory would, figuratively, step out of the way to allow me control. In the last few years of our life, he began to let me control more often. But it was still his body. I watched as he had children, reminding me painfully of my own. I thanked him when he gave his daughters the middle names Lucy and Cassie, after my brother and wife.  
On our deathbed, his family surrounding us, Rory spoke to me for the first time in years.

'Goodbye, Artorius. It's been a good one.'

His family glanced at each other as Rory allowed me our mind so I could reply with a voice.

_'Vale, Rory. Gaudeo te fuisse.'_

And, for the first time in over 2000 years, we were equals in our mind, and breathed our last breath together.


	11. K. Kindred

He lent against the wall. His wife and her imaginary friend were running around the TARDIS, trying to find the swimming pool. He had waved them off because of the wound in his leg he had neglected to tell them about. The TARDIS had wrapped a few small bits of cloth around his leg and was supporting it. There was a small screen next to him, words flashing across it. Unlike his alien friend, he knew how to talk to the ship.

'I'm sorry about Amy trashing our room. I hope it didn't hurt.'

A light chuckle came from the ship. _-Don't worry, Red can't do me much damage.-_

He smiled and leaned back. 'I don't know why they don't just ask. You'd show them the way.'

Another chuckle. _-Maybe, but I might not help.-_

Rory laughed as the screen flickered, showing Amy and the Doctor wondering around, lost. Amy was shouting at the Doctor, who was tugging at his bow tie nervously. 'Maybe I should go help them.'

He moved to stand but the TARDIS wrapped something around him, causing him to stay sitting.

_-Stay. No one has ever found this room before. I enjoy your company.-_

The Centurion looked around the room. It was filled with plants and foliage, all manners of life. Small creature fluttered here and there but, when he looked closer, he realise they were plants too.

'What is this place? You didn't say.'

The TARDIS sighed. Rory's brow furrowed. She had never done that before. _-This is what I once was. As Thief always says, my sisters and I are grown, not made. We were the plant of Gallifrey. This is my old self.-_

Inside his head, Rory could feel Artorius empathising with the ship, knowing what it felt like. He did to if he was honest. If you were technical, this was the Roman's body, not his.

'I understand, I think. No matter how much you change, no one notices.'

Another chuckle. _-A long time ago, I stopped changing, just to get him to notice.-_

'Amy hasn't even noticed. She still thinks I'm Rory.' Artorius' gruffer tone joined the conversation, Rory allowing him to take control.

_-I thought you looked different. So it's the Centurion's body, the nurse's mind?-_

'Sometimes it's my body _and_ mind. Rory let's me control the mind for a bit, like now. He's still here though.'

_-I see. Does the wife know about this?-_

'Which one? Mine or Rory's?'

_-You had a wife?-_

Artorius smiled. Mentally, Rory wrapped an arm around him in comfort.

'Cassia Felixa. The most beautiful woman in all of Rome. That's what my brother told me when he visited Ostia. And she decided to marry me. Me! But, she knew about Rory. I was guarding the Pandorica when we met again in Rome. I looked the same while she had aged many years. That's why I won't let him tell Amy. I don't want her knowing about Cassia.'

A few small flowers bloomed next to his hand as Rory took control again.  
 _-Has Thief ever...told you how we met?-_

Rory shook his head and the ship sighed again.

_-I was the ship of another Timelord. Along time ago. Thief stole me away and took me to amazing places. I don't mind, I love it. But I always miss my old friend.-_

Rory nodded. 'I'm still getting used to Artorius' body. Every morning I have to stop myself from freaking out because I forgot I have darker hair now.'

The TARDIS chuckled and Rory leaned back on the ship. He would never tell Amy and he didn't trust the Doctor. It was nice to have someone to talk to, someone who understood him.


	12. L. Labyrinth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is where things start to get more complicated.

They were lost. That much was obvious. The Doctor had popped round for a visit, offered them and their children a quick trip to DisneyWorld Clom and, as usual, landed on the wrong planet. Now Rory was trying to stop his two youngest children crying, while trying to explain to other three what was going on.  
Arthur was looking around. He was eight years old and was beginning to stop believing in bed time stories. Six year old Stella stood next to him, trying to look grown up. Holding her hand was four year old Xavier. Amy was holding two year old Alexandra while Rory sat with newborn Parker in his arms.  
'We need to go Amy.' Rory looked around. He could vaguely remember the way back to the TARDIS but, if this was anything like the last Labyrinth he'd been in, it wouldn't be that easy.  
'Right. Yes. Let's go.' The Doctor grabbed Xavier and lifted him onto his back before taking Arthur and Stella's hands. Amy glared slightly at him but followed her husband down the hallway.  
They wandered around for a few minutes before things began to change. They all be walking a straight corridor when, with their noticing there was a wall in the way. Rory retraced his steps and managed to reach his family but it wasn't always that easy. Doors would disappear just before they reached them, walls would appear out of nowhere, they'd find themselves walking past something they knew they'd seen before. Eventually it ended up that Rory was on his own with his son in his arms. He adjusted Parker in his arms and closed his eyes, concentrating.

The Doctor turned a few corners, gripping Xavier to his back. Amy had taken her older children before they could get separated but the middle child refused to move. The Doctor had left the Williamses in the TARDIS and was using sonic screwdriver to find the Centurion. The signal was weak but it was there. He was worried about Rory and his son. He had never known a signal to be this weak.  
He rounded one last corner to see Rory, Parker in one arm, holding a fire in the other. Not something on fire. There were flames flickered around his fingertips, lighting up the corridor. His son kept reaching for the fire but Rory pulled him away.  
'Now, now. Don't be doing that.' There was something wrong with his voice. It was all crackly and low. 'Your father wouldn't want you to get hurt.'  
He flinched and put a hand to his head. The flames trickled over his head, apparently doing him no harm.  
'I'm not going to let anything happen to him Rory!' He shouted into the gloom. The Doctor raised an eyebrow. Why was he referring to himself in first person?  
'Yes Artorius, I know what'll happen if Parker gets hurt.' Rory said again. The Doctor's eyes widened. He knew Rory spoke to his Roman self and that sometimes the Centurion took control. What if there was a third person in there. He stepped forward.  
'Rory.'  
The man spun, the flames going out.  
'Doctor.' It was Rory's voice not the other one. Apparently he didn't want him to have knowledge of that.  
'What was that?'  
'What?'  
'You had a fire in your hand.'  
'No I didn't, I was holding a torch. You made me drop it.'  
'It was on your head.'  
Rory glared the Doctor in the dim. He paused a second before sighing and answering. 'And it's in my head. You can look if you want.'  
The Doctor paused. It wasn't very often someone offered to let him look in their mind. 'No here. Later, when we're in the TARDIS.'  
Later came to quickly for the Doctor. Rory raised an eyebrow and, after debating with himself, the Doctor put his hands to Rory's temples and closed his eyes

It was dark, the corridor he landed in. The smallest of fires burned in the centre, illuminating four doors. Each one had a number, written in roman numerals, at the top with a name written underneath. Each name was written in a different language; IV in Latin, III in English, II in Pyrovillian and I in Old High Gallifreyan. Rory appeared next to him, stepping out of the III door. It was only then he noticed the name; _Arthur Christopher Tempus_. He knew that to be Rory's birth name but he was still confused.  
'What's going on?'  
Rory smiled. 'This is my head Doctor. It's a simple place I'll admit.'  
The Doctor walked to the end of the corridor. Rory just sat there watching him walk. The Doctor went to turn left and Rory was there in a flash, pulling him away.  
'Don't go down there.'  
The Doctor raised an eyebrow at his friend. 'Why not?'  
'You'll get lost. We're not allowed down there.'  
'We?'  
'Artorius, Kaxano, Theta and I. Well, maybe not Artorius but the rest of us have our rooms. We stay there.'  
The Doctor stared at him for a few minutes before running down the corridor. Rory shouted after him but he was already gone. This place reminded him of somewhere, all the rooms flying past. He stopped when he realised he had no idea where he was. He suddenly felt very scared. A chill ran over him as things began to echo down the corridors; screams, howls, indistinguishable shouting. He whipped his face from side to side, trying to figure out where he was. There was darkness all around, pulling at his clothes, scratching his skin. He was going to die, here, in someone else's mind...

'Doctor!'  
He blinked at Amy's voice. They were in the TARDIS and Rory was asleep. Well, passed out from the looks of it. The Time Lord looked at his old companion.  
'We'll be landing in five minutes Pond. You might want to wake the kids up.'  
Amy walked away, leaving the two men alone. As the Doctor set the TARDIS for a quiet landing Rory stirred.  
'Doctor?'  
It wasn't Rory's voice, nor was it Artorius'. It was the crackly one from earlier and the Doctor refused to turn around. The non-Rory sighed.  
'Don't blame us Doctor. We are just as lost as you were. The only difference is, we have company.'  
With that, Rory closed his eyes again and slept. Even when he woke up, the Doctor refused to look at him.


	13. M. Minds

Thalia glared at all the guards around them while the Doctor kept a protective arm around his young companion. Although over two hundred years old, Thalia was from Lupercalia, where two hundred was barely childhood. She was old and young at the same time, her image manipulator making her look in her teens, nothing like either of her ages. She was the strangest companion he had ever had in his TARDIS.  
The planet they had landed on, Manakalasia was a war with itself. The two of them had left the TARDIS to find guns pointed at them. Thalia had been ready to attack but the Doctor had pulled her back. The two of them were sat on crates, waiting to be told what to do.  
'Excuse me?'  
The two of them looked up at the alien who had called them. Judging from his uniform, he was incredibly low ranking.  
'The commander wishes to speak to you. He says it's important.'  
The two of them rolled their eyes before following the alien. He lead them to a small room at the back. The room matched with the aliens anatomy; the dark red walls were the same shade as the commander's scales, the bottle green furniture reflected his three eyes and, when he smiled, the Doctor noted the ebony paperweight on his desk was the same colour as his teeth.  
'Doctor.' He held out his hand to shake. The Doctor raised an eyebrow; the Manakalasians didn't shake hands by way of greeting. Thalia moved so she was closer to the Doctor, continuing to glare at the commander and refusing to give her name.  
'Now Thalia.' The commander smirked. 'Don't be like that.'  
Thalia jumped slightly and growled. Lupercalians were most similar to wolves and it was showing. 'How do you-'  
'Know your name? Why, that's exactly what I wanted to talk to you about.'  
He sighed, as if trying to find a way to explain it.  
'Do you remember, two incarnations ago, you travelled with a married couple.'  
The Doctor glanced at Thalia. The two of them shared a conversation with their eyes before turning back to the commander. Thalia's hand was resting on her image manipulator, ready to revert to her natural form at any moment.  
'Of course I remember them. What are you on about?'  
He sighed again before tilting his head to the side. 'You explain it, I can't be bothered to.'  
The Doctor was about to say something when the commander changed. His eyes grew softer, his mouth curled up into a familiar smile and his antennae dropped like they weren't being used anymore.  
'Hello Doctor.' The voice of Rory Williams, a man from earth, 2011, came out of the mouth of the commander, an alien from Manakalia, 4062. The Doctor froze.  
'Okay, not the reaction I was expecting.' The commander smirked but it was Rory's smirk, so human and normal. 'Doctor say something.'  
'You died.'  
Rory- because it was Rory there was no denying that- bit his lip. 'Yes. So did everyone else in here.' He tapped his forehead.  
'I don't understand.'  
Rory glanced at Thalia, obviously nervous about speaking in front of her. Thalia shrugged and tapped her image manipulator. Her form flickered before she stood as a Lupercalian, twice the size of an average wolf from earth. She curled up on the floor and fell asleep. The Doctor scratched her behind the ears before looking up at Rory.  
'Explain.'  
Rory's eyes fell slightly. 'You remember the time you looked into my mind, right?'  
The Doctor shuddered but nodded. 'The four rooms in a long corridor.'  
Rory smiled. 'It's more than four now. We've got about, I don't know, thirty? I'll check.'  
Before the Doctor could do anything, Rory's eyes went blank. Just before the Doctor got to panicking, the life returned to Rory's eyes and he sat up.  
'Thirty six. God that makes me feel old, thirty six lifetimes.'  
'How is that possible?'  
Rory smiled. He whispered something to himself and his eyes went blank again. He looked up and a familiar smirk took over his face.  
'Did I really use to look like that?'  
The Doctor froze as his own voice replaced Rory's. 'W-w-what? I-I...'  
'Oh stop blabbering.' The other Doctor smirked again. 'I'm only here to explain things. I haven't been out of my room in 27 lifetimes.'  
He took a breath and looked down at the floor. The current Doctor, the _real_ doctor, saw something in the other him's eyes. He didn't usually let this show through; defeat.  
'The universe never wanted me to die.' His voice was quiet and filled with so much sorrow. 'I went peacefully. I was ready to go. But I closed my eyes, expecting it to end...and reopened them. I was on Pyrovillia, looking out through someone else's eyes. I got used to living as Kaxano and then he died. And I woke up again...'  
A few small tears spilled from his eyes. 'What I'm saying is...none of us understand this. I woke up again and again, each time with one more person trapped in our mind. Things started becoming plural. I was us, me was we, mine was ours. I watched Amy and Rory grow up, I felt him die. And then I heard you were here, in Santilan's base, I had to tell you. Because you never saw how special you were. We all were.'  
'I don't understand.' He couldn't deal with this, not from his own voice.'  
'Neither do I. All I know is the universe didn't want me to die. The same thing happened when Kaxano died. And Rory. And Artorius. And Dentrho. And on and on until now. I cannot die. Knock off regeneration.'  
'I can't...'  
'I know. But I will tell you this before I go. The universe will never forget you. You will be in their hearts and minds forever.'  
The other Doctor's eyes went blank and someone else took his place. He knew it was the commander from the way he smiled.  
'Well I hope they managed to explain things.'  
The Doctor woke Thalia and almost stumbled to the TARDIS. Thalia kept talking to him but he ignored her. The TARDIS moved off quickly, knowing what was wrong. Thalia left for her room, leaving the Doctor alone. He fell against the console, unable to keep himself standing. The TARDIS floated in space as tears began to fall from his eyes. His own words echoed in his mind and he closed his eyes.

_The_ _universe_ _will_ _never_ _forget_ _you._ _You_ _will_ _be_ _in_ _their_ _hearts_ _and_ _minds_ _forever._

When Thalia Lunatis walked down to see her adopted father the next morning, she found him still and unmoving. She checked his pulse and heartsbeat to find them both non-existent. She cried and fell against the console. Pulling down on a lever, she set the TARDIS in motion. There was an ancient Lupercalian ritual for bring people back from the dead. She kissed the Doctor's forehead before throwing him into her home planet's sun. He would continue to live and she would see him again.

600 years in the past, on the fiery planet of Pyrovillia, a baby boy, soon to be named Kaxano Dailantos, opened his eyes for the first time not knowing that, deep within his mind, someone else opened theirs with him.


	14. N. Nature

It was one of the most boring things he had ever had to go through. He had nothing against Dantrho but he didn't really enjoy being a tree in the Gamma Forests. Human children walked past him every day, pulling off his leaves and stepping on his roots. None of them realised he, and the rest of the forest, were sentient.  
 _'Hey_ _Dant.'_ Prasinos spoke to him through the ground. Prasinos was his brother, meaning they were seeds from the same parent tree. _'Look_ _at_ _the_ _little_ _rule_ _breakers.'_  
 _'Oh_ _leave_ _me_ _alone_ _Pras._ _Nothing_ _happens_ _around_ _here.'_ Dantrho could almost hear his past selves laughing at him. They had all lead exciting lives, exploring the universe or, in Kaxano's case, defending his planet from Daleks.  
 _'Just_ _look_ _would_ _you._ _Someone's_ _climbing_ _Grandma_ _Rhiza's_ _branches.'  
_ Dantrho gasped and turned his gaze to the huge creamy grey in the middle of forest. Rhiza the Elder was the original tree in the middle if the forest, the one the rest of them descended from. Rhiza was the Empress of the West Forest and it was against Gamma Rule for a human to even touch her, let alone climb her branches.  
 _'This_ _I_ _have_ _to_ _see.'  
_ When his gaze reached Rhiza, he mentally sat down next to his cousins, Phyllo and Kladaki. There were hundreds of them, surrounding Rhiza, watching the man and young girl climb to the top of the old tree. Rhiza herself sat on the other side of Phyllo, glaring at her own physical form.  
 _'Anyone_ _know_ _who_ _they_ _are?'_ Prasinos said from next to Kladaki.  
 _'Ones_ _that_ _Lorna_ _Bucket.'_ Phyllo said.  
 _'I_ _thought_ _she_ _lived_ _in_ _the_ _South_ _Forrest.'_ Kladaki raised an eyebrow at his brother. He didn't really have an eyebrow, but they were mental projections, anything could happen.  
 _'So_ _did_ _I.'_ Phyllo shrugged.  
Through all this, Dantrho was looking at the man. Well, Rory and Theta was looking at him.  
 _'The_ _man's_ _the_ _Doctor._ _He's_ _not_ _from_ _Gamma.'  
'Where's __he_ _from_ _then?'  
'Gallifrey. __It's_ _gone_ _now,_ _so_ _he_ _travels,_ _saving_ _a_ _world_ _or_ _two.'  
_ Rhazi glared at him. _'And_ _you_ _know_ _this_ _how?'  
_ He shrugged _._ _'I_ _just_ _do._ _Looks_ _like_ _he's_ _found_ _something_ _in_ _your_ _branches.'  
_ It was true. The Doctor and Lorna were looking at something black and horrid. The thing looked like it leaked illness and death. All of the trees cringed away from it.  
 _'Grandma?'_ A young tree, Loyloydi, whispered, pressing close to her parents. _'What_ _is_ _that?'  
'I __don't_ _know,_ _sweetheart.'_ Rhazi said, reaching out to hug the seedling. _'What ever_ _it_ _is,_ _it_ _can't_ _be_ _good._ _'  
'It's __a_ _device_ _that_ _sucks_ _liquid_ _from_ _any_ _living_ _thing_ _in_ _the_ _area._ _If_ _it_ _was_ _left_ _there,_ _it_ _would_ _have_ _slowly_ _killed_ _Rhazi_ _and_ _everything_ _else_ _on_ _the_ _planet.'_ Dantrho allowed Theta to speak for a moment before reclaiming control of his body. He saw his family glance at him worriedly.  
 _'How_ _did_ _you_ _know_ _that?'_ Phyllo asked.  
He shrugged. _'Just_ _did._ _Now_ _if_ _you'll_ _excuse_ _me,_ _I'm_ _going_ _back_ _to_ _my_ _tree.'  
_ No one protested as he drifted away from Rhiza's tree. He ignored the whispering from the seedlings about his knowledge as he returned to his own branches. That was the way things worked for the trees. Their mental projections, humanlike and vibrant green, sat in the branches, looking down at the humans. They were linked to the trees and, for over two hundred years, no human had seen a mental projection.  
 _'Someone_ _should_ _thank_ _them.'_ Kaxano's voice rang in his head.  
 _'It_ _did_ _take_ _a_ _lot_ _of_ _hard_ _work.'_ Theta admitted.  
 _'And_ _it's_ _not_ _like_ _anyone_ _else_ _will.'_ Artorius mentally shrugged.  
 _'They_ _did_ _make_ _this_ _place_ _interesting.'_ Rory chuckled.  
 _'Fine,_ _give_ _me_ _a_ _minute.'_ Dantrho sighed.  
Looking through his leaves, he could see the two adventures walking through the forest. The Doctor was congratulating Lorna who was smiling broadly. Dantrho climbed to the bottom of his branches, dropping to the ground as the two of them neared. Both of them gasped, Lorna because of his appearance, the Doctor because he looked like Rory. Dantrho rolled his eyes.  
'I would like to say thank you.' His voice was sore from never using it but it came out all right. 'We would all be dead because of you.'  
He bowed to the two of them, causing Lorna to gasp again. A bow meant a honour from the tree which, to the humans of Gamma, meant a lifetime of good luck. Dantrho smiled at Lorna as she left with the Doctor. The time lord himself barely paid him a glance, causing him to laugh.  
'Its still against the law to climb Rhazi the Elder.' The two of them froze slightly. Dantrho smirked as he glanced behind him. Guards were running between the tree, heading towards the adventurers. 'I'd start running if I were you.'  
He laughed as his previous self grabbed the girls hand and sprinted off through the forest. He climbed up into his branches as the guards ran past, laughing all the time.


	15. O. Origins

He was just a child and, in his opinion, that was the worst. He had been at Demon's Run all his life, although it wasn't much, and he knew he would probably stay there for the rest of it. They had plucked him from his planet when scientists discovered he had temporal anomalies in his brain waves. He was about a week old.  
That was years ago and he was all grown up now. Taking the names Arthur from the story books Madam Kovarian dumped in his room without a second glance and Tempus from the words of his chart; TempusetCaelum. His guards called him Christopher, which soon became his middle name.  
There were two people he was supposed to pretend were his parents, even though he knew they weren't. The woman with his hair and the man with his smile only visited him when he was about to have a test or a scan. Apparently to calm him down, in reality to make sure he wasn't going to give the physicians any trouble.  
Most of tests he had were on his brain and they hurt. By the time he was three, he had learn to retreat inside his mind, to hide away with Theta and Kaxano looking after him. The scientists told Madam Kovarian his brain wasn't reacting to any of their tests, causing them to think he wasn't the person they were looking for. Kovarian just told them to shut up and carry on.  
Arthur was six when they brought someone else to Demon's Run. She was a lot older than him and seemed half asleep. With a shrug, Arthur realised she was probably drugged. There was a small bulge in her stomach and her hand was resting on it. He found out later she was pregnant. Theta stopped talking to him when they brought her in.  
Every day, Arthur did his chores. When the new woman came in, he was told to drop them to look after her. Everyday he had to make her bed, check her stats and make sure she was alright. She never woke completely but sometimes her eyes would blink open. Kovarian would push him out the way whenever this happened.  
Months later, he heard the lady screaming from down the hall. He tried to run out of his room to get to her but the guards stopped him. He had to sit and listen to her scream all night. Kaxano did his best to comfort him but Theta had retreated into the depths of their mind, refusing to talk to either of them. Kaxano tried to explain what was wrong, but it made Arthur's head hurt. About a month later, Kovarian came into his room. She dragged him off, kicking and screaming as he went. He knew something was wrong when Kovarian herself visited him.  
He woke up in his room to familiar shouts. It was the voice Theta used when his mind drifted back into memories. He ran to his window, trying to see when the door to his room opened. Kovarian was there, holding a small cradle in her hand. She pulled him out the door and told him if he made a sound, she would kill him. He screamed but, before she could make good on her threat, a Roman stood there, sword pointed at Kovarian.  
The events that followed scared him more than Kovarian ever could. There were bright lights, loud shouts and a baby screaming. The lady was holding him close and he was looking over looking over her shoulder at the battle. Something appeared in the wall in front of him and he barely had time to scream before he woke up somewhere else, his old torturer stood above him.  
The next few years were worst than anything. He watch the lady's baby grow into a monster, a psychopath bend on one thing; kill the man who tried to save them. He himself grew into a teenager and, as he did, so did the number of experiments. Finally, when he was nearing adulthood, Kovarian walked into his room, Melody smirking at her side.  
'Melody's going to use her regenerative energy to restart your life. We're not entirely sure what will happen but, best case scenario, you keep all your memories but have a new, healthy body.'  
'And the worst case?'  
'You die, you stupid boy, now stay still.'  
It turned out to be halfway between the two. He didn't die and he did get a new body. A tiny, baby body. The problem was something was missing. He could feel it in the back if his mind, a gap in his being. Kovarian confirmed it two days later as his brain resetting itself and deleting the anomalies. Kovarian sneered and told something to the guards who used to be his parents.  
The next day he found himself crying under a bush, wrapped in a blanket. He was scared and alone. Before he could scream to loud, someone picked him up, holding him tight and walking him towards a massive box. He leaned into the man, burrowing his face in his jacket until he was pried away. He was put down outside a door and left to fall asleep. Something about the noise now echoing in his mind kept him quiet until the door was opened by Mrs Victoria Williams the next morning.  
Many years later, Arthur Christopher Tempus, going by a different name but remembering is old one found out his daughter was at Demon's Run. He found the baby and the boy, both scared and crying, and saved them even if he knew they wouldn't be safe for long.  
He had already lived it after all.


	16. P. Plastic

He could have lived through a hundred lifetimes (and he did), see civilisation rise and fall in front of his eyes (did that to) and travel to the end of the universe (does it count if he did it in another lifetime?) but he would never be able to figure out how his skin- his normal, human, Caucasian skin- became plastic.  
He had been on a raid with the other centurions when it had happened. Unbearable pain all over his body. Most of the Roman's shouted out, a few swearing. Two younger centurions- Lexus Dextus Frantus and Sirelius Tandus Kankius- fainted due to the pain. Some of the older soldiers scowled at them and kicked them when they had recovered. There was no space for weaklings in the Roman Army. On the way back, it was all they could talk about.  
'The Gods are favouring the Britons. They are punishing us for invading their lands.'  
'Don't be stupid. The Britons are pagan, they only worship our Gods because they are scared of us.'  
'It must have been the Gods. Only Mors or Pluto could cause such suffering, Mars must have turned against us.'  
'The God of War would not desert some of his bravest warriors-'  
'Maybe that's it. Maybe Minerva or Diana felt we were becoming too confident-'  
'The Goddesses would not hurt us for that, Minerva is a goddess of war herself and Bellona would protect us.'  
Artorius tuned out the rest of the conversation. It would be no good if they were distracted when Picts attacked them. While not ranked any higher than them, he had been in the army longer than any of the other centurions. He had been put in charge of the operation by their commanding officer so if anything went wrong, it was his fault.  
 _'The Autons.'  
_ Artorius shook his head and ignored the voice in his head.  
 _'Could be anything.'  
'Won't be though. Only certain things can do that to a person and the Nestene Consciousness is the only one that would.'  
'But why? What's so special about this place, other than Artorius.'  
'I think you know Kaxano.'  
_He shook his head again, scowling now. He hated when his mind spoke for him, especially when it layered itself with three different voices. When they didn't stop talking he started shouting and didn't stop until they were quiet.  
Later, sat next to the fire, he found himself staring at his hand. There was something wrong with it. If he was completely honest, his entire body seemed wrong when he spied it in a river but his hand worried him the most. It felt wrong, attached to his arm. He bend his fingers, his entire body shaking involuntarily. It was such a simple action but something inside told him it shouldn't be happening.  
 _'I told you.'_  
'We believed you Theta, you don't have to be so smug.'  
'Does that mean what I think it means?'  
'Yes, Rory. Amy will be hear soon.'  
The centurion scowled at the foreign names. His mind seemed to be intelligent than he was, speaking of things that he couldn't even imagine. He tuned the voices out again, trying to concentrate.  
'Artorius.'  
He looked up, grateful for a normal voice. His brow furrowed when he saw the lipstick- a word his mind just produced- and the glazed eyes.  
'Cleopatra has visited our camp. She says we must all visit her.'  
The voices began laughing and he shouted at them. He nodded at the soldier and walked past, frowning slightly. As far as he knew, Cleopatra was in Egypt and dead. Shrugging, he followed the rest of his camp to a tent in the middle of camp, rubbing his hands together to keep warm.  
If he'd been paying attention, he would notice the way his hands felt; smoother than his old skin but not as soft, and the way, when he straightened his fingers and pulled them, they seemed to move away from the rest of his hand.


	17. Q. Quads

He'd had a thing about the number four for as long as he could remember. It was easily explained when he realised the number of the door in his mind. He always felt safer when he was using a multiple of four than any other number. It was something natural in his mind that helped with a myriad of things.  
He had an amazing sense of direction because of the four points of the compass. It helped in the army, even though he didn't know about it then. He always knew which was North, East, South, West and the four directly between them. He had trouble finding directions like South-South-East because they weren't exactly four, rather eight, of them. He could still do it though, if he concentrated enough.  
He could literally feel when the seasons changed. When the air had more winter about it than autumn, or if spring arrived before the cherry blossoms, he always knew. This was the only thing that helped him keep track of how long he had been guarding the Pandorica and how long it had been since Rory had last let him control his own body.  
He was brilliant at card games. Snap was his favourite because it relied on luck, so no one could tell he was, technically, cheating. But, really, was it his fault if he could see, in his minds eyes, what lay on the underside of the card. He was always sure to throw in a few mistakes, so he didn't win every game he played.  
He was very good at meditating. At first, he couldn't see how that related to the number four but it was explained when an old lady offered to tell his future using the four elements. He couldn't actually control Earth, Water, Fire or Air but he had more peace with them; floods didn't happen when he was around, people who attempted to steal the Pandorica found their village the site of hurricanes and people who assisted him or treated him nicely noticed their crops growing faster than normal.  
Of course, not everything reacted good with his penchant for fours. Triangles were more structurally sound than squares, meaning the safest of structures felt wobbly beneath his feet. Most rooms appeared to have four walls but, rather stupidly in his opinion, his mind interpreted the ceiling and floor as wall, leaving him with an uneasy feeling in any room he was in.  
Three was the lucky number, giving Rory a small advantage in life but it did nothing to help him. If anything, it made everything worse because he wasn't in tune with the luckiest parts of the world.  
His own people favoured the number three. Three fates, three furies, three sons of Saturn. The 12 great Olympians could be divided by four but the three was always there, interfering. Of the top of his head, he couldn't think of where the number four cropped up in mythology, even though he was sure it did at some time.  
A lot more numbers could be divided by three, two and one than by four. His luck was 25%, not the best but not terrible. Rory had a 8.3% of being luckier than him. Kaxano had a 25% advantage while Theta had a 75% lead on him.  
He was met at every turn by odd numbers, multiples of other numbers, prime numbers, fractions, everything that didn't exactly match the number four. He'd had a second child, simply so there were eight members in his family, even if he didn't know at the time. He'd always felt awkward in the legion after Lucius died, because 100 was a much nicer number than 99. The more he tried to make his life fit in with his favourite number, the harder it became.  
There was one upside (for him) at least. Over 2000 years after his birth, after he was old and wrinkly and made peace with Rory, he woke up in another person's body. He spent his days watching another person's life pass his eyes and couldn't help but smirk. Because not many things divided by 5 and, ironically, he would always be 5% luckier than Dentrho.


	18. R. Resurrection

'You're so beautiful.'  
It hurt, it really hurt. He had only known pain like it once, and that time he had ended up as a baby. He didn't want to die but the Doctor couldn't die here. He knew how the Doctor died, Theta has told him. So he jumped in the way. He closed his eyes in pain and felt his life fading away.

There was someone crying. No, he was crying but...not him. His mouth screaming, his eyes watery but he couldn't control them. He opened his eyes and looked around, sighing as he did. It was his room. The one in his head. Lifting himself off the bed, he opened his door to the corridor that separated his multi-mind.  
Two people were sat around a small fire in the middle. One, the Time Lord, was telling a story while the other, the Pyrovillian, fuelled the fire. They looked up slightly as he moved to sit with them but the three of them turned to look at the fire.  
Flickering in the flames was the face of a beautiful woman. She had long dark hair and soft hazel eyes. She was singing in a language Rory didn't recognise but could understand. She was smiling down at the fire and Rory realised he was looking through the eyes of his new body. Number 4's mother grinned and handed the baby over to his father.  
 _'Artorius Aelius Castus. Welcome to Rome.'  
_ Again, he knew what the man was saying but he couldn't understand the language. Kaxano laughed slightly and the two humanoid looked up with raised eyebrows.  
'We're actually human this time. Not someone that simply looks like one and pretends to be one from time to time.'  
Both the others laughed before turning to look at the fire. A lot of time seemed to have past in Artorius' life during the few seconds they'd been talking. He was sitting in the temple, kneeling down in front of a huge statue. Two younger children sat either side of him and something in the back of his mind told Rory they were his siblings, Lucius and Aelia.  
 _'Please Lord Apollo, help my grandmother. She hasn't moved in weeks and she needs your help.'_  
Beside him, his siblings were whispering the same prayer. In the corridor, the other three bowed their heads as the scene shifted to a Roman funeral. Artorius' father Marcus was praying in Latin to Pluto and Mercury to guide Aeliana to Elysium, a land the entire family thought the matriarch deserved. Artorius, as the oldest son, gave a special prayer to the family gods, Tempestes, goddess of storms, Vesta, goddess of fire, Antevorte, goddess of the future and Mars, god of war.  
'I don't want to watch this. This is horrible.' Rory whispered.  
Theta put an arm around his shoulders and smiled sadly. 'You don't have to. You can retreat to your room but it would be a horrible mistake. Stay and watch.'  
'Why?' Kaxano whispered as the fire showed Artorius training for the army.  
Theta smirked. 'I lived a lot longer than you two did. Trust me, Rory. Stay.'  
Numbers 2 and 3 exchanged confused glances. 1 had always had a way of keeping secrets, something they had never been able to understand. Their minds and lives were open books while Theta's was a different language they needed help translating.  
Sighing, they turned back to the fire, watching as Artorius fought Lucius. The three of them winced when the sword slashed his face and bowed their heads as he rammed his sword through his brother's chest. It had to be done, kill or be killed. Simple in principle.  
Kaxano leaned forward and whispered something into the fire. Theta did the same and nodded at Rory.  
'Words of encouragement, things we want him to hear.'  
The humanoid nodded at his old friend. Leaning forward he whispered 'Don't blame yourself, he died doing something he enjoyed.'  
Because Lucius did enjoy fighting, more than anything. It had pained them to watch him smile as he killed Picts and Woads and slashed down other soldiers in training.  
Years past. They watched him fight in the war against the Britons before being stationed near a huge stone structure. Theta rubbed his hands together eagerly.  
'Amy's coming.' Was all he said. Rory leaned in and paid much more attention. He didn't know exactly what would happen, but he trusted Theta. Trusted the Doctor.

Later on, stood in front of a the Pandorica, he almost smiled at his friends words.  
'Why do you have to be so human?'  
Because that was stupid really. He was never human, had the minds of two aliens from the future in his head and had stolen the life of a real, genuine human.  
'Because right now, I'm not.'


	19. S Strangers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Crossover time! List of crossovers in the end notes.

Rory Williams, in the plastic body of Artorius Aelius Castus, had met some strange people over 2000 years.

The first people he met were a group of knights, stationed in Britain like he was. The Sarmatians were lead by a Roman who shared his name and who went by the name of Arthur. He had almost laughed when he realised who he was speaking with. Rory spent a few hours every day down at the tavern with the knights.  
'What is this box you guard?' The youngest knight, Galahad, asked one day.  
'It is the box that will bring my wife back to life.' He answered smiling.  
'That sort of sentiment will get you nowhere. Women are for cooking and making babies.' An older, impulsive knight, Kay, jeered.  
'And that sort if statement will get you killed.' Rory stood, pulling out his sword and pointing it at the older man.  
'Are you real going to kill me over some pathetic-'  
When Rory left that night to guard his 'box' there was one less knight at the round table.

The next people he encountered were strangely dressed travellers from Scotland. There were four of them, two men and two women, and they were discussing some sort of school.  
'I still don't see why we can't use my castle.' The dark haired man said, scowling.  
'We told you, it's too close to a Muggle settlement.' The blonde woman replied, as if she'd said it a million times.  
'We could just get rid of them.'  
'Salazar!' The brunette woman almost shouted. 'We can't just kill Muggles.'  
'I agree, I merely meant a compulsion charm.'  
Rory turned around and they all raised their eyebrows. 'Yes?' The blond man said, obviously trying to be polite.  
'Nothing, just thought you were having an interesting conversation.'  
The four of them looked at each other and around the empty room before pulling sticks out of their pockets and pointing them at Rory.  
'Stupefy!' They all shouted. Rory rolled his eyes as the spells jumped off his plastic skin.  
'It looks like we have a lot to talk about.' He smiled at their dumbfounded expressions.

He was sat in a junkyard with the Pandorica when the next pair of strangers turned up. The men were smartly dressed, one leaning on a cane, the other inspecting Rory.  
'You've been accused of murder, my good fellow.'  
'Again? I didn't do it, promise.'  
The one inspecting him glanced at his companion who said. 'Again? Have you murdered before?'  
'Oh John, don't be stupid.' The one with the cane rolled his eyes as his friends launched into a speech. 'We were told to look for the man who lives at the Junkyard, no description, just a location. I don't expect the victim's family actually knew our friend here, not his name, appearance, just his reputation. A reputation that appear to make him out as a murderer.'  
Rory glanced at John, who has shaking his head.  
'Also, notice the way he is sat in front of this box, remarkable thing by the way, he is protecting it. The second we walked onto the scene, his muscles tensed up, as if waiting for a fight. Although this conversation, he has been eying your cane and looking for a weakness in me. Some sort of trained soldier or fighter. He also seems unlikely to move, or afraid of injury, despite the fact that we have the advantage. Therefore, he either has immense confidence in his fighting skills, or what he is guarding is so important he won't give up, no matter how many people fight him, securing his reputation as a killer.'  
Rory smirked as the man looked incredibly happy with himself. 'You remind me of a friend I had once.'  
'Oh yes, and why's that?'  
'I often felt like punching him as well.'  
The world's best detective could be seen with a broken nose for almost a week.

It took him awhile to meet another person who was on the same level of weirdness as the rest. When he did, it was when he was accused of yet another murder. The DCI had him held against the wall while his DI and DS stood watching. The DI seemed unhappy but the DS was smirking.  
'Now then, why did you murder David Conners?'  
'I didn't.' He said, trying to keep his cool. The DCI punched him in the stomach.  
'Tell me the ruddy truth!'  
'I am.'  
Another punch. The DS laughed. The DI shook his head as Rory was dropped to the floor. The DCI leaned down to Rory's eye level and whispered threateningly.  
'Now I'm going to leave you with my DI and if you don't tell him, I'll make sure you're spending your night with one of the worst murderers this side of Manchester.'  
Rory nodded slowly. Five minutes later, he was sat across from the DI with an ice pack pressed to his forehead. He didn't really need it but he had to keep up appearances. The DI pressed record on the tape and looked up at him.  
'Didn't realise they did that yet.' Rory frowned slightly.  
'Pardon.'  
'You're the first police station I've seen that records interviews.'  
'Have you been in a lot of stations, Mr-'  
'My name won't be on record.'  
The DI's eyebrows furrowed. 'Why not?'  
'Well apparently I died in the World War.'  
Rory smirked as the DI looked even more confused. 'What are you talking about?'  
The Roman grinned wider. 'Do have the time and patience to listen to a story about time travel, an alien and a blue box?'  
The DI raised his eyebrows and smiled. 'Only if you can put up with a tale about a coma, a car and a jump into the past.'  
The two of grinned at each other across the interrogation table, accusations of murder forgotten.

The last people Rory would have put on his list, came from his own time. He was wondering through the graveyard, on his way back to the museum, when he saw a group of kids digging up a grave. He cleared his throat as he reached them. They spun round, all glaring at him.  
'What you doing 'ere?' The blonde girl asked, everything about her screaming chav. The other three looked at each other worriedly.  
'Trying to figure why you would want to dig to a grave.'  
Before any of them could say anything, the rest of the dirt in the grave tumbled away and a boy sat up, cricking his shoulders.  
'Finally! He practically shouted. 'I've been down there for almost two weeks! I died of hunger about five times. I've shouted myself hoarse and you did nothing!'  
They rolled their eyes as the boy started to rant. He seemed to be quite a few years younger than them but the gravestone said he was in his late, rather than early, twenties. If it was his gravestone.  
'Is that yours?' He said nodding at the stone.  
'Yeah, got a problem?'  
'Seems like you're a bit young for it. And you would have to be dead.'  
The other four shook their heads and looked down as the curly-haired boy smirked.  
'I'm immortal. Haven't aged since I was 19.'  
He seemed so proud of himself, Rory couldn't help but dampen his spirits. 'Well, I'm an alien and haven't aged in 2000 years.'

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> King Arthur Film  
> Harry Potter  
> Sherlock Holmes Movie  
> Life On Mars  
> Misfits


	20. T. Timeless

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thought I'd write some poems, just for fun.

Stop all the clocks, that's what they say,  
When someone meets their dying day  
But I always seem to find,  
A ticking clock when I have died  
Time would stop, though, if it did,  
Because dying is my strange habit  
Drowning, bleeding, shot twice and then,  
Erased from time again and again  
Back to life became my life,  
Keeping secrets from my wife  
Hiding someone inside my head,  
But letting him out to fight instead  
My final death was of old age  
Which unnerved me in many ways  
Not only did leave me dead for good  
But I woke up with leafy hair and arms made of wood

Back in, breath out, the doctors said  
But based on that, I must be dead  
My hand on my mouth, I feel no air  
My hand on my wrist, there's no pulse there  
And even when I find out why  
I still wonder why I had to die  
Was it just so another could take my place  
Or was I meant to save time and space  
And even if the death didn't hold  
I would have preferred to grow old  
But when my life was on the brink  
Deep inside, I start to think  
Am I special, in any way  
Was I supposed to die that day  
So even though I cannot die  
I always have to wonder why

Born of starlight, fire and earth,  
A different person with every birth  
The minds of others, trapped in his head,  
Who sometimes take control instead  
But we must focus on just two minds,  
Who's stories stretch through time  
The first an alien, trapped on earth,  
Curse by a birthright, he relived birth  
Travelling in stars with an old friend,  
In an underground world, he met his end  
Another man took his place,  
A Roman soldier, travelling space  
To guard the box, he had to change,  
The alien inside the soldiers brain  
They became legends, living stories,  
Meeting their friend again, they continued their journeys  
Through time and space, from star to star,  
Their everlasting myth was told to lands afar  
They fought monsters and men,  
They won again and again  
A loss would bring them back to life,  
Back to their friend, back to their wife  
To never die, that is the curse,  
Of the Timeless Centurion and the Immortal Nurse.


	21. U. Unique

The Doctor introduced Amy to the King of Haskan without a seconds though, showering both parties with compliments before the three of them walked off together. Two people arrived a few minutes to late to join them.  
Rory ran in from outside, his grin disappearing when he saw the almost empty room. He sighed and went to sit down. He had been playing with the leonine children of the palace, so he had lost track of time and the Time Lord.  
From a small door, ran another man, this one lion-like in his appearance and dressed in robes of a prince. Noticing his father was gone, he rubbed his paw over his face before looking up. He had been chatting to his friends in his head and lost track of time because of the Time Lord.  
They both looked up at the same time and Rory stood. Prince Lyev's eyes widened when he recognised the man walking towards him with his hand outstretched.  
'Captain Rory Williams. I'm here with Commander Smith and Lieutenant Pond with the Shadow Proclamation, section Sigma.'  
It was the lie the Doctor had come up with and told them to keep to at all times. He didn't expect the others to keep to it, but he would. He didn't expect the lion-man to grin like a newborn cub.  
'Prince Lyev Greva, prince of the house of Ryev. Heir to the thrones of Kogote and Kleg and number 6.'  
Rory frowned at that last bit. Theta had been translating all through the Prince's little speech but no one knew what the number meant. Lyev leaned forward and smiled.  
'You are number 3 right?'  
A grin spread across Rory's face as the Prince spoke with the centurion's voice. Artorius winked a silver eye before allowing Lyev to take control.  
'Number 4, technically.'  
The leonine alien nodded as the two of them began to walk side by side, Rory following Lyev as he turned through corridors.  
'Of course, the nurse's mind, the centurion's body.'  
'Is that how I'm classed? The nurse?' Rory smirked as his future self chuckled.  
'Yep. Makes it easier than saying foreign names all the time. It was Dantrho's idea, he's after you. The Traveller, the Fire, the Nurse, the Centurion, the Tree and the Lion.'  
Rory groaned. 'Why do I get the lame name? Theta's is mysterious, Kaxano's sounds awesome and yours and Artorius' sound powerful.'  
'The Tree isn't that good.' The Lion chuckled as the Nurse began to rant. They had come to his quarters and the Prince slumped into a sofa as his past self glared.  
'It's better than the bloody Nurse!'  
The two of them looked at each other for a few minutes before bursting into laughter. The humanoid fell down next to the lion-man, leaning on him for support.  
'How about we call you the Captain? Believe me, it fits.'  
'Surely I know what fits me more than you do.'  
'Ah, but me and Dant know your whole life, you only know half of it.'  
There was a small silence between them before Rory spoke again.  
'So Dantrho's a tree, is he?'  
'Member of the Western Gamma Forest. Bit of a rebel, if I'm honest.  
'So we go all branch and leaf-y and then we go all royalty and lion-y.'  
Lyev laughed. 'A tree with a green mental projection and a lion with blue fur and silver eyes. Bit different to two identical humanoids.'  
They both smiled and both noticed how identical their grins were. Even with such a difference in their biological structure, similarities shone through. Their eyes were shaped in the same way and the way they held themselves was close to identical.  
Somewhere in the castle, something exploded. Numbers 3/4 and 6 looked up before jumping to their feet. Rory Williams grinned at his future self.  
'Let's go save Theta.'  
Prince Lyev Greva grinned back, as the two of them ran down the corridors, laughing incredibly similar laughs.  
When they reached their destination, King Otyeazz had the Doctor slammed up against a wall, snarling in his face. Amy was being held back by the Queen.  
'Mother! Father, stop!  
The leonines looked growled at their son. 'Why!' Otyeazz roared. 'We have no reason to trust them. We don't even know who they are.'  
Lyev glanced at Rory, who rolled his eyes. The Prince had to stop himself from laughing. 'They are Commander John Smith, MD, and Lieutenant Amelia Pond of the Shadow Proclamation. They are here with my friend Captain Rory Williams to study our planet's rule and customs. Nothing more.'  
Rory grinned as his friends were dropped, picking themselves up and walking over to him. 15 minutes later, when they were back in the TARDIS, the Doctor looked up at Rory.  
'How did you get the Prince to agree with you. King Lyev of the Haskani was notoriously stubborn.'  
The humanoid alien shrugged. 'We had a few things in common, we seemed to be on the same wavelength.'  
Amy raised an eyebrow. 'What could you have in common with a blue furred lion?'  
Rory chuckle. 'You'd be surprised, Amy. You really would.'


	22. V. Vendetta

The young girl, for she hated her true form and had refused to disable her image manipulator for the fifty years she had travelled alone, ran through the alleyways, the device on her wrist telling her where to go. The woman she had chasing had never done anything to her but it was what she tried to do. The Doctor would never take revenge on the person who attempted to kill him but his last companion would.  
Stopping at the edge of the alley, she pulled the gun out of her pocket. The would-be-murderer was stood with the Doctor and another woman, laughing. The girl raised her gun, her finger on the trigger.  
Someone grabbed her hand as she fired the gun, pulling it up so the bullet simply flew into the sky. Another hand wrapped around her mouth as she was pulled towards the wall, out of sight.  
'Now, now, sweetheart. You know how much I hate violence.'  
The hands around her mouth and wrist left, leaving her to turn and run after the man. She knew that voice, would always know it and would chase the man who used it for all time.  
'Wait! Please, Doctor!'  
The man skidded to a halt but refused to turn. She stared at his back, willing him to look at her.  
'You are the Doctor, right? You came back for me?'  
He shook his head, his shoulder slumping. 'I was the Doctor. A very long time ago. And I'm sorry sweetheart, but I haven't come back for you.'  
'I don't understand.'  
Sighing he turned around, sitting down as he faced her. She crouched down, her position similar to how she would sit in her normal form. He looked like her Doctor, very few differences but she could tell there were many under the surface. She could only hear one heart beat and he didn't have the smell of someone who had travelled in time his whole life. He was wrong, deep down she knew he was wrong.  
'The universe didn't want me to die.' And like that he was different, better again. 'So I came back as someone else. Again and again.'  
She wanted to correct his mistake, tell him what really happened but she knew he would hate her for it. It was what she wanted, not him.  
'I have to kill her. I have to.'  
'Why?' He was the wrong man again. 'Why do you have to kill? It was always killing with you, sweetheart.'  
She growled. 'My nature always clashed with yours, Doctor or whoever it is that replaced you. Only when I wasn't myself were you proud of me.'  
He stood up and her hand went to her manipulator, activating it in a flash. Man and wolf stared each other down, wolf big enough to look man in the eye.  
'I was always proud of you. For being you. You survived a war and you seemed fine, not a flaw in sight. But now...'  
He scowled and it was definitely the Doctor. It might have been him all along but now it was like she was a child again, being chastised for attacking someone, no matter what badness they had done. The Doctor, the man who had adopted her, always expected the best, of her at least.  
She growled and spoke in her own Tongue, knowing her father's TARDIS, which she still flew, would translate. 'I lost my only friend in the world. You expect me to be still normal after that.'  
'No.' He walked past her, raising an eyebrow at her snarl. 'I honestly don't. But I didn't expect you to be a killer.'  
She whipped her head down, pressing her nose to his forehead and growling. 'I will kill both of them. Your murderer and your replacement, next time I see you.'  
He chuckled, the wrong man standing in front of her. She almost recoiled at the smell. 'I would expect nothing less.'  
The way he said that word as he turned to leave was almost patronising, mocking even. As he reached the entrance of the alley, he turned his head slightly, smirking.  
'In fact, I remember it well.'  
And he left. She ran to the entrance to watch him. He stepped out into the sunlight, walking towards the man and women. The red head kissed him and they began to walk off. As they began to walk, the second man turned and she saw his face. She sank to the floor because he was right there. As they entered the blue police box, her snarl grew and she howled, not caring who heard.  
She was a wolf, and wolves killed those who offended them. She would hunt.


	23. W. Words

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Words chosen at random.

_God  
_ Artorius stared at the shrine in Quintus Caecilius Iucundus' villa, wondering at the strange people this family worshipped. Quintus walked up to him and smiled.  
'Our family gods.'  
The young boy looked up at him. 'They look silly.'  
A huff from in his mind. _'You look silly, I look fantastic.'_

 _Practice_  
The Doctor finished his rant before realising no one was moving.  
'Well come on!' He practically shouted.  
Rory rolled his eyes and got to work, telling people what to do under his breath.  
One volunteer stood next to him and whispered. 'How do understand him?'  
'Believe me, I've had practice.'

 _Frustration_  
Amy stepped out of the TARDIS and screamed. She ran back inside and the two men exchanged a glance. Rory stepped out of the door, saw the swamp and stepped back inside. Turning to the Doctor, he gritted his teeth and glared.  
'Just once, could you land where you said.'

 _Zoom_  
Rory picked up the magnifying glass and began to look around. Inspecting the lines of the floorboards close up, zooming in on every little detail, 'looking for 'clues'. A knock on the door make him look up.  
'You really need to grow up.' Amy smirked.  
He winked a magnified eye.

 _Celebration_  
'Surprise!' The married couple shouted. 'Happy birthday!'  
The Time Lord raised an eyebrow. 'It's not my-'  
'Yes it is.' Rory said, smirking. 'I have it from a very valuable source.'  
He had to put a hand to his head because it was, after all, Theta's birthday in there as well.

 _Wait_  
He sat down next to the box, wondering what he was to do now. He had been there for a few months and still couldn't think of anything to do. No one had tried to attack, no one had visited. He sighed. All he could do was wait.  
And wait.

 _Speeding_  
'I'm sure we're breaking Intergalactic Speed Laws.' Rory shouted as he was flung across the control room.  
'What do you know about ISL.' The Doctor shouted back, pulling a lever  
'More than you apparently. Just set the destination ten minutes before they get there.'  
'I have; that's why we're speeding.'

 _Lucky_  
'How did you win that much money? Did you cheat?'  
Rory rolled his eyes as he put the to bags of money down in the control room.  
'I just got lucky. Besides, The Doctor won more.'  
The Doctor walked in, grinning. 'See Amy, I told you Space Vegas was good.'

 _Sentence_  
'You can't just...I can't believe you...why on earth would you...I thought...what if you...we were so scared...and you're just sat...I hate you!' She screamed.  
He just looked up and smiled 'I don't think that was a proper sentence, do you?'  
She slapped her husband.

 _Grammar_  
'That's really bad grammar.' Rory said, staring at the graffiti.  
'Now's not really the time.' Amy said, rushing about trying to find the hidden door. 'I don't think they really cared.'  
Rolling his eyes, he pressed a hand to the graffiti, revealing a door. 'Or maybe they did.' he smirked.

 _Tale_  
'Tell us a story about Uncle Theta!'  
Arthur and Stella crowded their father, who frowned. 'Don't you want to hear about me and mummy?'  
'No.' Arthur cried. 'Uncle Theta.'  
Rory chuckled and smiled. 'Okay. Let's hear a story of when Uncle Theta was little and he blew up the citadel.'

 _Ingredients_  
'I don't think that's right.' Rory chuckled as the Doctor ran about, chucking thing into the bowl.  
'How do you know? It could be a recipe from a different planet.' The alien smirked.  
'Doctor, it doesn't matter what planet you're on; there is no peanut butter in a Victoria Sponge.'

 _Unconscious_  
'Maybe he's faking it.' Amy whispered, as the aliens dragged the Doctor away.  
Rory raised an eyebrow. 'What?' Amy hissed, glaring at him. 'It is him. He can do anything.'  
'Amy.' Rory chuckled. 'He walked into an iron bar. I don't care what you say, he's knocked out, simple as.'

 _Weapon  
_ He looked down at the two weapons. Sword or gun. Blade or bullet. Which would save his wife? As per Artorius' request, he was wearing the Centurion's armour. The TARDIS shook and he almost fell to the floor. The Doctor shouted and he grabbed them both. Better safe than sorry.

 _Theatre_  
The two of them ran about, trying to find their friend. The Time Lord and his ginger companion had just stopped a bomb but had lost Rory. Just as they thought they had looked everywhere, Rory walked out of a screening.  
'What?' He smiled. 'I wanted to see that film.'

 _Teenager_  
'Can I borrow a tener?'  
'Can I go round Vicky's on Saturday?'  
'Can I become a Scientologist?'  
'Can I go with Uncle Theta?'  
'Can I go to the school dance?'  
'No.' All five children screamed and stormed off.  
Rory looked at Amy and they laughed. Their children were such teenagers.

 _Species_  
'Humans.' House chuckled, locking Rory off from Amy. 'Always so easy to trick.'  
'But I'm not a human.' Rory glared at the wall. 'At least I haven't always been one.'  
House's chuckling stopped, Rory felt his mind being probed.  
'I'd let me out, if I were you.'  
The door opened.

 _Temptation_  
'Don't.' He said, as a hand crept from under the table, trying to grab a piece of cake. He was trying to ignore both the Doctor's hand. It managed to grab the cake.  
'You know that's coffee cake, right?'  
The hand let go and Rory picked up the cake, smirking.

 _Hyper_  
He glared at the Doctor and Amy as they began running about, every so often knocking something over an giggling. He glanced over at River,who was glaring at her mother and husband.  
'You catch them.' Rory said to his daughter, glaring at her instead. 'You gave them the sugar.'

 _Question_  
Rory stared down the aliens, smirking. 'Silence must fall when the question is answered.'  
The Silence opened their mouths to scream but Rory spoke first. 'I know the answer. What happens when I say it?'  
He smirked bigger and opened his mouth. The aliens ran. But Rory still remembered them.


	24. X. Xeno

Xeno- The Greek word for something strange or alien. Root of words Xenophobia- fear of the strange- and Xenophilia- love of the strange.  
It is entirely possible, though majorly improbably, to be both a Xenophobe and a Xenophile. The most obvious example is the Doctor, who loved all things different and weird but also fear for the safety of his companions when facing said things. But there are many other examples, spread throughout history. King Lyev of the Haskani was known to change at the flick of the switch, Kaxano Dailantos refused some tourists entry to his planet but welcomed other with open arms and Dantrho of the Western Gamma Forest spent half his life defying his families tradition of avoiding outsiders like the plague.  
Another, much less famous follower of this tradition, is young Artorius Aelius Castus. At age eleven, he had more courage than his uncles, older cousins and father put together. He had fought a monster when he was ten and still had the scars and gladius to prove it. He swung the sword around in a circle and slumped on the floor. He was bored, he needed something to do.  
'Why don't we go back to the temple?' Lucius muttered next to him. The younger boy wanted adventure just as much but didn't have anything to show for previous exploits.  
'It won't happen in the same place twice. We need to find something new.'  
The two brothers glared at the floor. Artorius shoulder began hurting but he ignored it.  
'Animals! There's animals in the square!'  
Aelia run through the house, skidding to a stop in front of his brothers. 'Animals! Lions, camelopards, wolves, I didn't see all of it.'  
Artorius rolled his eyes. 'The circus has been here for months. What's so special?'  
'They escaped! All the animals have escaped!'  
The two boys jumped up and the girl grinned. This was their adventure. As they ran down the streets of Ostia, Aelia filled her brother in.  
'They were performing like normal.' She almost shouted. 'Then this guy appeared. His shawl wrapped around his head and his face was hidden. He said something, it was a strange language, and raised his hand. The cages just opened and all the animals went wild.'  
Lucius scowled. 'You'll have to go after the man, Art. We'll get the animals.'  
'Okay, but be careful.'  
The younger two laughed as they ran into the square. Lions and wolves were attacking villagers and guards the like, while other animals ran about, trampling children. Lucius and Aelia ran in, picking up swords from fallen guards and slashing the feet of carnivores. They had trained with Artorius' sword and knew how to fight. They dodged claws and teeth, pulling people out of harm's way.  
'Artorius!' Aelia shouted, pointing down a side alley. He sprinted down it just in time to see a man turn down another alley.  
'Stop!'  
The man picked up speed and so did the boy. They ran through the Ostian alley system, Artorius chucking rocks to make the man go a certain way. They came to a dead end and the man turned to face the boy holding the sword. He pulled the fabric away from his head, revealing a dark green, scaly, lizard-like face.  
Fear spread through every fibre of Artorius' being but he smiled. No matter how much the strange man scared him, he enjoyed adventure too much to back down. The lizard-man snarled.  
'I've fought monsters before.' The eleven year old grinned. 'And I won.'  
The alien screamed and launched himself at the boy, clawed hands scratching at his face. The sword arced, slicing across the alien's chest. He screamed and grabbed the boy by the throat. Lifting him up, he began to cut off the air supply. Scratching at the alien's hands, Artorius choked out a scream.  
 _'Kick him in the chest!'  
_ Usually the boy ignored the voices in his head but this was good advice. His right foot collided with the alien's wound, causing him to let go.  
 _'Sweep his legs out.'  
_ He followed the second voice, gruffer but calmer than the first. The alien fell, causing the clothing to fall off his arm. On the scaly limb was a metal bracelet, pulsing with energy.  
 _'Switch it off! The blue button!'  
_ He ran forward, stomping on the right button. The alien screamed and jumped at Artorius, slashing at his back. The young boy screamed as his old wounds were torn open. He kicked out again and the alien recoiled.  
 _'Run now!'_  
Without a single thought, he bolted down the alleyway, until he reached the square. Most of the animals were asleep and those that weren't were dropping off. Lucius and Aelia were sat in the middle leaning against a cage. They looked up and waved. Artorius slumped down next to them smiling. It was the scariest, most fun, worst, best day of his life.


	25. Y. Years

One year on, he had found only three things to fill up his time; a few sticks, a pile of rocks and his gun hand. He would throw the first two and shoot them down with the third. He would test himself by throwing further, faster, different directions. But pretty soon, he ran out of rocks and twigs and he couldn't leave to get more. Because that would mean leaving Amy.

Fourteen years on, the Romans finally found him. They dug him out, threatened him and 'forced' him to bring the box to the Forum. He agreed, as long as he was allowed to stay with it. They dragged him to a ship and took him to Rome. On the ride across the channel, he saw a young soldier looking at him.  
'What?' He almost barked out, his hand going to his sword.  
'Nothing.' The kid said. 'You just look like my Uncle Artorius.'  
Neither said another word for the rest of the trip.

Sixty two years on, an old woman sat down next to him. They stayed in silence for a few moments before he sighed.  
'I met your son.' He whispered.  
'I know.' She murmured back. 'He told me.'  
Without saying a word, and letting Artorius take over, he put an arm around her and pulled Aelia into a sideways hug. Brother and sister sat together, tears threading to spill.

Three hundred and seventy-four years on, the Roman Empire began to fall. He pushed the Pandorica from country to country, becoming a legend in most of them. He fought in hundreds of battles, contributed to dozens of wars and started a few fights, just to move the box from one place to another.

Seven hundred and ninety eight years on, he was tired but he couldn't sleep. He was hungry but he couldn't eat. He just wanted to give up but he knew he couldn't. Because, if he wanted to give up, he should have done it eight centuries ago, not now. It was too late to give up now,

One thousand, one hundred and thirty nine years on, the Vatican got the Pandorica. He had conflicting views about this; knowing they would protect it but also knowing that neither he or Amy were religious. One day, the leader of the Vatican visited him and his box.  
'Father.' He said, bowing his head.  
'My child.' The Pope smiled. 'I know you do not follow our religion but it would do the others in your mind good to pray.'  
He watched the old man leave, his mouth hanging open. He prayed everyday of his life from then on.

One thousand, four hundred and thirty nine years on, he finally managed to find a way of making time go faster. If he hid away in his head but Artorius didn't leave, time sped past. All four inhabitants of his head watched the fire closely, taking it in turns to rise and face threats. Theta rose when it required brains, Kaxano when it required tricks, Artorius when it was brawn and Rory when it needed a mix of all three.

One thousand, nine hundred and eight years on, he was sat in the security office, playing chess against Kaxano. It was one of the strangest games ever but it was fun. A noise in the other room made him look at the camera screens. He grabbed his torch, grinned to himself and ran into the next room, ready to kick some Dalek butt.


	26. Z. Zenith

When the astronaut walked out of the lake, he knew what was going to happen. Theta's grip around his mind was loosening, and Kaxano and Artorius weren't far off. As the entire universe closed in on itself, he grabbed hold of Artorius, falling through the void.  
He landed with a thud in a very familiar place. Lifting his head to look around the corridor, only the doors with numbers 3 and 4 were left. He turned to smile at his Roman counterpart.  
'I have some explaining to do.' The Centurion frowned. He nodded now the corridor and Rory began walking, ignoring the feeling of dread that Rose up in his as he did.  
'I've stolen your life Rory.' The only sound beside Artorius' voice was their feet shuffling along the floor.  
'I already took yours.'  
Artorius made an irritated noise. 'I was already dead when you began to use my body. The Alliance made a plastic copy and put my consciousness into it. The life you took, the life of a plastic soldier.'  
His voice was bitter. Rory looked behind them and realised he couldn't seen the fire anymore. They were entering dangerous territory.  
'Where are we going?'  
'Onwards.' Was the only answer he got.  
'Did you ever wonder why I didn't respond to you lot? When I was younger?' Artorius was refusing to meet Rory's eyes as he spoke.  
'Once or twice, yes. I thought you were just stubborn.'  
The Roman looked up, tears lining his vision. 'Because you shouldn't have been there. After you died, a Crack in time wiped you from existence. Your consciousness and others in it should have just gone. But the Cracks couldn't deal with taking three very complicated lives out of the universe. So they let you continue but they put blocks around my mind. It's how we managed to break out of the Nestene's hold.'  
He sighed and stopped walking. Rory turned to face him but Artorius still refused to face him.  
'When Amy and the Doctor reset the universe, you were still meant to be there but you weren't at the same time. Amy managed to get rid of the cracks, meaning you were never erased, meaning you died. But Amy also remember you in her time, so you had to be there. So the universe pulled me forward, putting my body in your place but letting you control it.'  
The second he stopped talking, the small amount of light in the corridor went out. Rory shuddered.  
'Where does this corridor lead?' Rory's voice trembled.  
'To death.' Artorius' voice was just as shaky. 'It scares us because we've never had to experience it. But now time has been broken. Nobody can die.'  
'So where are we going?' They were stood out side a door, the Roman's hand on the doorknob.  
'We're going to save the world.'  
And the door opened and light flooded in.

It had been four 'months' since time had stopped. Rory could feel time going past and, he knew, would get older as it went. He was attached to the eye of the storm, they shared a mind. Things would never be easy.  
He had found himself in a hospital but, in this life, he was the patient. Even worse, it was a mental hospital. He was in for schizophrenia but it couldn't be further from the truth. All the others had gone but he could still remember them. Even weirder, he could remember those who came after him. It was these half-formed memories, he suspected, that landed him in the hospital.  
He was sat in the mess hall, watching the real crazies freak out, eating mashed potato with a spoon (the least dangerous meal they could come up with) when someone sat down next to him. He turned to face the man and almost laughed.  
Dantrho of the Western Gamma Forest lived up to everything Rory half-remembered in the back of his mind. He looked almost exactly like the humanoid in front of him but was pure green and almost see-through. A thin, similarly-coloured rope coiled around his waist, leading out the door.  
'Keeps me connected to my tree. They've got it on a truck, so I can move it whenever I want.'  
'Who does?'  
Dantrho smiled and leaned in. 'The Alliance of Time.'  
'Not the same Alliance that got Amy?'  
The tree man laughed. 'Of course not! D'you honestly think Theta would let us join with them. It us. Now come on.'  
He didn't need to say anymore, Rory understood who 'us' was. The two of them walked out of the mess hall and towards reception. Rory raised an eyebrow as several orderlies passed without a second glance.  
'Are we allowed to be doing this?'  
'Of course.' Dantrho walked right up to the desk and smiled. 'I'm here to take Captain Williams.'  
The receptionist nodded and the tree man pulled Rory out the door.  
'Captain?'  
'We need to make you sound more official.'  
As they neared five big trucks, one with a tree on the back, a little boy ran straight towards Rory.  
'Roranicus!'  
Recognising the dark-haired version of his younger self, he picked Artorius up in a hug. The two laughed and jumped on the truck with the tree on.  
'Why are you so young?' The humanoid asked, ruffling his future self's hair.  
'No idea.' The eleven year old laughed.  
The trucks moved out and, turning to look at the front seat, Rory saw Theta driving and Lyev giving directions. Kaxano and Dantrho were arguing near the latter's tree. Eventually, the Pyrovillian gave up and moved to join the humanoids.  
'We've got a plan.' He smiled. 'Theta's got it all sorted but we all need to help out.'  
'Okay.' Rory said, letting Artorius run to the tree and start climbing with Dantrho. 'Where do we start?'  
'We've already started; we've got you a job?'  
Rory frowned. 'What place would take a mental patient?'  
Artorius swung down from a low hanging branch so he was face to face with his past self. 'Area 52.'

Rory glared at a Silent and it glared back through the glass. He knew the cage wouldn't hold but he had to put up appearances for 'Ma'am'. Amy leading Area 52 was the last thing he expected. As he began to turn, the glass on one of the containers began to crack. Looking around he noticed all the 'cells' breaking and a few Silents escaping.  
'Get out of there!' Artorius' voice came through his eye drive and ear piece.  
He ran faster than he had ever ran before.  
'Your daughters just stopped the world ending by refusing to save it.' Theta's voice chimed in.  
'Very good, just as I raised her.'  
About fifty people, almost all future versions of him, laughed through his head piece as he ran into the main hall. He shouted something for Amy's benefit and began talking about the Silents being outnumbered but Kovarian had to interrupt.  
People began dropping left, right and centre. Everyone were taking their eye drives off but Rory couldn't. Theta was sending information through it.  
'I'll wait down here, ma'am, buy you as much time as I can.'  
Amy turned to face him, frowning. 'You have to take your eye drive off.'  
'Can't do that, Ma'am. Might forget what's coming.' He need her to leave, he didn't want her to see this, even if she didn't remember it.  
'But it could activate any second.' She sounded genuinely concerned and he gritted his teeth.  
'It has activated, Ma'am. But I'm no use to you if I can't remember. You have to go now, Ma'am.'  
'Yes. Yes, thank you, Captain Williams.'  
And she was gone. The pain was unbearable but he kept his gun focused on the door. He need to stay focused. The Silents broke through and he doubled over in pain.  
'Rory Williams the man who dies and dies again. Die one last time and know she will never come back for you.'  
Rory smirked slightly, ripping the eye drive off his face and lifting his head up. 'But they will.'  
The wall behind him broke as Dantrho's branches forced their way through. When he started in Area 52, Rory had had the tree moved to the exact place Theta told him, knowing the Time Lord had a plan. Theta, Kaxano, Artorius, Dantrho and Lyev jumped down, taking down Silents on all sides. Theta was using his old screwdriver to stop their electricity, Kaxano was using fire, Rory used his gun, Artorius used his old gladius, Dantrho used his own roots and branches and Lyev just went feral, using his own teeth and claws to battle. Soon all the Silents were on the floor, unmoving. Rory looked up and began shouting out orders. He was the Captain after all.  
'Thete, fix the machine. Kax, protect him. Dant, Lyev, call in the reinforcements. Artorius, come with me.'  
'Rory.'  
He turned to look at Madam Kovarian. Her eye patch was hanging off and she looked pathetic.  
'Help me. He would so you must in his place.'  
Rory glanced at Theta who shook his head. He wouldn't, not matter what, he wouldn't save the woman who had tortured Rory and his daughter. The humanoid turned to face his captor.  
'You tortured me. You took me from my home and then you stole my daughter. She's fine but the earliest memory I have of River is her shooting at me.'  
He leaned forward, glaring straight into Kovarian's one eye. 'And the Doctor is a very good friend of mine but there's one thing I know that you don't.'  
Theta was by his side in an instant, holding onto the eye drive. 'I'm not as forgiving as everyone thinks.'  
Before Kovarian's stress could register on her face, the eye drive was back on, and she was screaming. Rory barely managed to speak over her screams.  
'Come on, Artorius.'  
He picked the boy up and ran after Amy, River and the Doctor. Theta had explained that, if the machine installed in the pyramid wasn't fixed, parts of history would appear in the wrong time.  
When they reached the top, Rory put Artorius down. They looked up as the Doctor continued ranting.  
'Melody Pond! Your daughter, I hope your proud.'  
Rory almost smirked as the Doctor turned on him. The Time Lord got Amy to uncuff him and took off his bow tie. The Doctor told him to say something and he raised an eyebrow.  
'Why?'  
'Father of the bride, do it!'  
Rory nudged the little boy next to him, who glared upwards. 'What?'  
'Your body, your DNA, your kid. Say it.'  
The Doctor and Amy shared a glance as a shout came from downstairs. 'Done! Rory, Artorius, you need to get down here!'  
Rory lifted Artorius up so he was face to face with River.  
'I consent and gladly give.'  
They ran towards Theta's voice the second he finished speaking, the young boy holding tightly to the Captain.  
The entered the main room, Silents scattered across the floor. Over a hundred people were milling around, linking hands and sharing words. Rory ran towards Theta.  
'What's going on?'  
'When the world resets, we need to be connected, in order, so our minds fit together right.'  
Kaxano held out a hand to Rory, who put Artorius down and grabbed the hands of both of them. Artorius grabbed hold of one of Dantrho's branches, the tree man squeezing his shoulder before running up his life force.  
They all stood there for a few seconds, a hundred versions of the same man linked together, when a bright light blinded them. Rory tried to hold onto the two hands but they were slipping away.  
'Don't worry.' A voice in his head whispered. It was Artorius but he sounded older, wiser. 'I'll be fine. I'll see you later, yeah.'  
'Yeah.' He almost choked out as the light disappeared.  
He was back at Lake Silencio, watching the Doctor die.

Rory entered the house to hear his wife and daughter squealing. Rolling his eyes, he walked through the house and into the garden. He pretended to be excited when he heard the news but he was still sad. Artorius had left and he missed him. He still had Theta and Kaxano in his head but he only had a few memories from his time as the Roman and they were fading. Now he was just Rory, the boring nurse from Leadworth.  
A knock at the door made him turn. Nodding to the girls, he went to open it. Standing there, grinning up at him, was a little boy, barely older than eleven. He was wearing a toga and smiling slightly. If he didn't know any better, Rory would've thought this kid was him when he was younger, with darker hair. Wait a minute...  
'Lorem.' He almost whispered.  
Artorius looked up and grinned. 'Hi! This is weird, isn't it?'  
'I'll say.' Rory grinned back. 'Last time I talked to you, you were a wise old man in my head.  
The boy laughed and pulled his old self into a hug. Rory could feel the scars on his shoulder, reminding him it was real. 'What's going on? How did you get here?'  
'Well...'  
A familiar sound filled his ears and the TARDIS began to appear in front of him. In the garden, Amy dropped her glass. The man that left the blue box was not 11 but 13, who looked just like his future selves.  
'Hello, Captain.'  
He grinned, pulling Theta into a hug. They let go and smiled at each other, Rory leaning down to pick up the young Roman.  
'Dad.' River said from the doorway. 'What's going on?'  
'Little party.' Theta said, smirking. 'On a very important planet called Dux IX.'  
'What's so important about that?' The convict frowned.  
'It is the birthplace of one Arthur Tempus.'  
Rory's head whipped up and Artorius held on tighter to his neck. 'Well then I'm definitely going.'  
Theta smiled and turned to the side, letting the two humanoids in. Kaxano, Dantrho, Lyev and many more waved at them from inside the TARDIS.  
'Sorry ladies, you can't go.'  
Rory turned to see Theta trying to stop Amy and River from entering the TARDIS. Both men lent on the side of the doorway, the young boy squished between them.  
'And why not?' Amy scowled.  
'You need to know the code.' Artorius said, before anyone else could speak.  
'What code?' River glared.  
Three versions of the same man glanced at each other, none knowing what to say. Finally Artorius grinned.  
'The entire Roman Alphabet.'  
And they closed the doors and set the coordinates before either woman could do anything. Artorius moved round to Rory's back and they grinned at each other.  
Life was the best it had ever been.


End file.
